Nick of Time
by luli27
Summary: Brennan examines why she's feeling like she's feeling while Booth contemplates whether is time to let go. Based on "If I'm not In Love with You"; "Save the Best for Last" and "Breath" No longer a three shot but a five shot as of right now
1. If I'm not in Love with You

**In the Nick of Time**

**Disclaimer: **Nope, they're not mine. I'm just borrowing them for a bit.

**A/N:** Yes, I know I have at least two if not four unfinished stories and I should really be writing them but once this plot bunny got into my head, I couldn't get rid of it. Apparently, musie is back and is determined to make me write something new and how am I to defy her, right? This came to me as I was listening to my MP3 - I tell you that little device has inspire quite a few of my stories. At first, it was going to be a one shot, then a two chapter and in the end, I heard the song I'm using for the second chapter, and it became with a three parter - complete with a plot! And maybe, if you ask nice enough some smut. Don't know yet, cause I haven't gotten that far, though the second chapter is all but done. All three chapters are based on different songs, which I think really guide them. I hope you're in the mood for a long ride, cause as usual, they're not short chapters - especially the second one, which is at 15 pages and counting. Please let me know what you think!!!! Song by Faith Hill: If I'm not in Love with You.

**Chapter 1: If I'm not in Love with You  
**

"Maybe you just miss him," a voice said from the office doorway, causing Dr. Temperance Brennan to turn from her contemplation of the computer.

"Angela!" she said, surprised. "What are you doing here? I thought you'd left for the day already."

"I had," Angela nodded. "Hodgins just wanted to check something in the lab," she added, vaguely gesturing towards the entomologist's lab. "And don't change the subject."

"I'm not changing the subject," Brennan protested as she turned back to the laptop and acted as if she was engrossed in whatever was on the monitor – disregarding the fact that she had been staring at the same page for the last half hour without adding one single word. "I just don't know what you mean."

"Right," Angela scoffed as she walked farther into the office. "I mean that maybe the reason why you can't concentrate enough to get any work done," she waved her arm to indicate not only the laptop but the number of books that had been opened and discarded throughout the office, "is because you miss him and can't stop thinking about him."

"That's ridiculous," Brennan denied. "I'm not missing anyone; besides, I've never missed anyone so much I couldn't work. I'm just a little distracted at the moment, that's all," she added, because even she knew that trying to convince Angela that she was getting the work she had stayed late for, was a lost cause.

"Right," Angela nodded, not looking like she agreed at all. "I noticed that you didn't ask who 'him' referred to."

"That's because there's only one 'him' you're always referring to," was the caustic retort.

"That's true," the artist agreed easily enough. "Well, sweetie, continue to lie to yourself if you must but please don't lie to me. I know better."

"That makes no sense," Brennan informed her best friend, frowning in confusion.

"I know what I mean," Angela waved any confusion aside. "And so do you."

"No," Brennan denied, shaking her head. "I really don't. But then, I rarely know what you mean," she added under her breath, and though Angela heard her, she decided to let it go.

"He's out on a date tonight, you know," she said a few moments later, as she leaned against the back of the couch and crossed her arms.

"How . . . ?" Brennan started to ask, wondering how Angela knew Booth was out on a date when she herself didn't. True, Booth didn't like to talk about his love life with her, but she was sure he wouldn't be comfortable discussing it with Angela either.

"He told Hodgins the other day," Angela explained. Despite their being polar opposites, the two men had developed a surprisingly strong friendship. "Apparently, he met her about three weeks ago and she's pursued him since."

"Booth doesn't like pushy women," Brennan commented, turning her head to hide the smug smile she knew was curving her lips.

"He seems to like this one," Angela disagreed. "This is the third date they've been on," she then informed Brennan, looking at her closely to see how she took the news. Three dates in three weeks with a woman that had pursed pursued him was not something that could be easily dismissed, because like Brennan had said, Booth liked to make the first move. If he was still seeing this woman, there must be something about her that he really liked.

"The third . . .?" Brennan asked, not even finishing the question.

"Yep," Angela nodded and by the look on the other woman's face, Angela knew this was the first she'd heard of these dates. When Hodgins had first told her about the new woman Booth was seeing, Angela had wondered if Brennan knew about it and if maybe that had been the reason for the fight they'd had during their last case. She now knew that whatever the fight had been about, it hadn't been because of this.

"Oh," Brennan said in a small voice, as she hurriedly got up from her chair and walked to a bookcase to avoid having Angela notice how upset she was at hearing this new information. "He must really like her," she commented, doing her best to strengthen her voice but still keeping her back turned towards Angela.

"Yes, he must," Angela agreed and then sighed, deciding that she might as well go all the way because she might not have another opportunity later on. "You know," she said a few moments later, during which Brennan had gone back to pretending to be busy. "I promised myself that I wasn't going to say anything; that I was going to let you figure it out by yourself because some things just aren't worth as much if we don't figure them out by ourselves. But, Brenn, if I keep waiting for you to wake up to your own reality, soon there might no longer be a reality for you to wake up to."

"Once again," Brennan said, putting back the book she'd picked up and giving up trying to discourage Angela from talking by pretending to be working as that strategy really wasn't being effective, "I have no idea what you mean."

"I mean, sweetie," Angela told her, looking as serious as Brennan had ever seen her, "that you are in love with Booth."

"No, I'm not," Brennan immediately denied, shaking her head vigorously.

"Yes, you are," Angela repeated; and in contrast to Brennan, she was quite calm and composed. "What's more, Booth's in love with you."

"No, he's not," again, the denial was immediate and powerful. "He doesn't see me that way; there's a line we don't cross. And didn't you just tell me he's out on a date? Besides, if he was in love with me, don't you think he would have said something by now?"

"No," Angela answered, not even bothering to address that whole line or date business, "he wouldn't because he's waiting for some sign that you won't shut him down cold if he dares to mention it."

"Angela," Brennan said, slowly as if speaking to a particularly dense child. "I know you think you're very good at figuring out what people are thinking and feeling but this time, you're completely wrong."

"No, I'm not," the utterly rational and calm tone Angela was using was doing more to unsettle Brennan than what the artist was actually saying. "Like I said before, if you need to keep lying to yourself, go ahead but please don't lie to me. And don't," she added, raising her hand, "argue with me to try and convince me I'm wrong, because I know I'm right and I really don't feel like arguing with you tonight. Just please, listen to me, really listen to me and I promise this will be the last I ever say on this subject, okay?"

"Okay," Brennan finally agreed after studying Angela closely and noting how serious she was. "Go ahead," she told Angela as she once again sat behind her desk.

"If you really don't love him," Angela told her, with an intensity the artist rarely displayed and which told Brennan just how much she meant every word she was saying. "If you are completely sure that you don't want a life with him, then that's fine; that's your prerogative and I really can't say or do anything to change that. And I won't because we love who we love and no one else has a say in it. But I want you to do something for me when I leave here tonight," Angela asked, leaning forward a bit and Brennan found herself nodding without thinking about it. She wasn't sure why but hearing that Angela was going to stop pestering her about Booth, something she's been asking for, for a long time, did not fill her with the relief she'd been sure she would feel.

"I want you to use that analytical brain of yours to compile and analyze all the evidence pertaining to this particular issue," Angela told her, apparently having decided that talking to her using language she was comfortable with would get better results than using what Brennan would call 'heart language'.

"I want you to think about what your life was like before Booth came into it and what it is like now and I want you to honestly decide whether you're better off now or if you were happier then," Angela went on, listing every point she wanted Brennan to go over. "I want you to think why is it that he's the first thing you think about every morning when you wake up and the last thing you think about before you go to sleep every night," Brennan opened her mouth to asked how could Angela possibly know she did that when she'd never mentioned it to anyone, but at the last moment decided that it would be better if she didn't admit to anything.

"I want you to," Angela continued, noticing, but ignoring, Brennan's surprise at being found out, "really think about why is it that whenever you need emotional support, he's the first person you turn to; why he's the first person you call whenever you have any sort of news – good, bad or indifferent. Really think about why you let him take you out to lunch and dinner and bring you breakfast almost every day and why you allow him to pull you out of this place at a reasonable hour most nights when you would drop kick anyone else from attempting it. Think about why you care so much about Parker and why you agree to spend so much time with him and why you enjoy it so much. And then I want you to think about the future," here, Angela became even more serious, something Brennan hadn't thought was possible and the change disturbed Brennan even more.

"I want you to imagine," Angela went on, "what your life will be like five, ten, twenty years from now; to finally wonder what kind of role you want Booth to have in your life five, ten, twenty years from now. Imagine it with him in it and without him and see which one you like best. And then, try and realize that just because he's been at your beck and call almost since the moment you met him doesn't mean he'll always be there." When she saw Brennan's worried face, Angela hastened to reassure her.

"I don't mean that he won't always be your friend or your partner for as long as he can," Angela told her. "But what do you think will happen if he meets someone and decides to try and spend his life with her? Do you really think that your relationship won't change? He might always be your friend but he'll be someone else's husband and that will mean that someone else will be his priority; you would no longer be number one. How would you feel if that were to happen? But Bren, this won't work if you're not brutally honest with yourself," Angela cautioned her. "You don't have to tell me you're in love with Booth if you don't want to, but please, please, be honest with yourself about what you want, what you don't want and what you'll do to get what you want." Angela stopped for a moment to take a breath and judge how Brennan was doing.

"I'm not saying that this new woman is the one he'll marry," Angela added, knowing that that thought must be somewhere in Brennan's mind. "Or even that the next one will be it," but the fact that they were having this conversation at all was a sign that Angela was worried this new woman could really be it. "What I'm saying is that there might come a day when that happens," and frankly, while one part of Angela was surprised that that day might have arrived already, another part was surprised it had taken almost five years, "Booth is not a man that's meant to be alone; he has too much to give to a woman, too much he wants to receive to spend his life alone. Now what you have to decide is whether you want to be that woman or whether you're okay with it being someone else." Knowing that she had said everything she could to get Brennan to really think about this, and seeing that Hodgins was waiting for her, she straightened from the couch and walked towards the office door.

"And sweetie," she said, turning to look at the confused forensic anthropologist once more, "whatever you end up deciding, make damn sure that it is something you can live with for the rest of your life – because I have a feeling that you just might not have the chance to change your mind later on." With one final look at her best friend and a whispered 'good night', Angela walked out of the office and towards Hodgins, thanking God that she had finally come to her senses and that he'd still been waiting for her. Now, she just had to pray that Brennan would also finally see the light and do what everyone had been waiting for the last five years.

-----

_If I'm not in love with you  
What is this I'm going through  
Tonight _

"You are in love with Booth," the words kept repeating over and over in Brennan's mind long after Angela had gone home and had pretty much guaranteed that she wouldn't be getting any work done that night.

She was wrong, that was all there was to it; Angela was wrong, Brennan decided for the hundredth time. But just like all the other times, something kept nagging at her; something wouldn't allow her to just put the whole thing to the side. She kept thinking of all the things Angela named and wondered just how she was so sure all of them were true. And there was no question that they were true – even if she'd never admit it to Angela, she couldn't deny them to herself; she was a firm believer in being honest with one's self, after all.

So, if all of those things were true, what did they mean? What did Angela want her to decide? Well, that was a dumb question; she knew what Angela wanted. Angela wanted Brennan to admit to being in love with Booth. But she wasn't – was she?

Argh! How could Angela do this to her? Who did she think she was, going around putting strange ideas into un-expecting people's heads? Her and Booth's relationship was just fine. There was no need for her to think or analyze anything; they were both happy with the way things were. And so what if maybe she did miss him? Just a tiny, little bit?

After five years of being subjected to his presence on an almost daily basis, Brennan was pretty sure she was more than entitled to notice if he wasn't around to nag her or drag her somewhere and to maybe miss him just a tiny bit. After all, this was the first time in a long time that they'd gone so long without seeing each other. Plus, they also had a fight right before they had solved their last case. It had been a nasty, little fight and though they talked about it later and she'd specifically asked him if they were okay and he said 'yes', she was still somewhat . . . not worried, but concerned about it.

But they were fine; he said it and she believed him because he's never lied to her. So, whether she was a bit concerned or not that wasn't the reason she was finding it so hard to work that night. Neither was missing him the reason why; she was just a bit preoccupied with the newest deadline for her book, that's all. Angela had no idea what she was talking about.

With that thought firmly in mind, she turned her attention back to the computer and was determined to forget everything Angela had said and spend the rest of the evening working, which was why she had stayed late in the first place.

But twenty minutes later, she was still staring at the same page she'd been staring at all night and what Angela had said was still going round and round in her mind. With an audible sigh and a silent promise to herself that she would pay Angela back for making her do this, Brennan finally gave in. She turned off her laptop and with another sigh, got up from behind her desk and walked towards the couch.

She sat down, laid her head on the back of the couch and put her feet on the coffee table. Taking a deep breath, she closed her eyes and steadied her breathing, entering into a light meditative state; her preferred method to relax and work out particularly thorny problems. With a smirk, she wondered what Booth would think of being thought of as a thorny problem. She erased the smirk with her next breath and concentrated on clearing her mind.

_And if my heart is lying then  
What should I believe in  
Why do I go crazy  
Every time I think about you, baby  
Why else do I want you like I do  
If I'm not in love with you _

As her mind cleared, Booth's face emerged as clear as if she was looking at him in that moment. This wasn't the first time his face came to mind while she was meditating; it was actually a fairly regular occurrence. This time unlike all the other times, however, she didn't push it to the side and lock it behind that door of things she'd analyze later. Apparently, thanks to Angela, later had finally arrived and she was going to have to think on what Booth really meant to her.

For a moment she was lost, having no idea from where to begin such a task. She wasn't a person given to introspection; she preferred action to thinking. Not that she didn't think, God knew she did and Booth would probably claim that she thought too much but she liked to think about academic problems or criminal mysteries. She did not like thinking about her emotions – or anyone's emotions really. That was Booth's forte not hers. In their partnership she was the brains and he was the heart. This was Booth's area, it definitely wasn't hers.

And as the thought formed, she had the almost irresistible urge to get up and go see Booth to ask him if she was in love with him and whether he was in love with her and to please explain the answer. She was sure he'd know the answer. But even as she opened her eyes to get up, she realized that this was one emotional dilemma she had to resolve for herself. Booth couldn't help her neither could Angela. As Angela had said, some things we needed to figure out for ourselves or they lost their meaning.

Ok, she could do this. She'd figure figured out serial killer cases that had baffled the authorities for years; surely, she could figure out whether she was in love or not. Though to be fair, she'd had a template to guide her on her investigation of those cases; on this case, she was flying completely blind as Booth would say.

And she didn't need either Booth or Angela to tell her she was thinking of inconsequential things to put off thinking about the real matter. Apparently, she was something of an expert when it came to avoidance.

When in doubt of how to begin, she'd always thought it was best to just start from the beginning. And since she did have a sort of guide for this exercise, she decided to take Angela's questions in order.

_And if I don't need your touch  
Why do I miss you so much  
Tonight _

Was her life better for having known Booth? The answer was surprisingly easy and quick in coming. Yes, her life was better since she'd known Booth. It was true that he could be very annoying and sometimes she wanted to just bash his head in or at the very least, push him out of her office or apartment; but it was also true that he's brought a dimension to her life that had been absent from it since she was 15. He'd made it possible for her to discover life outside the lab; thanks to him she had a family again – both her biological and adopted ones. If she'd been feeling sappy, she'd say that he'd brought color into her otherwise somewhat dreary existence. But she was much too practical and literal to use that kind of metaphor; instead, she'd admit that, because of him, her life was a lot more well-rounded now than it had been before they met.

That question out of the way, Brennan turned her mind to the next one. That one also had a relatively easy answer. The reason why Booth was the first thing on her mind in the mornings and the last thing before she fell asleep was because they spent so much time together that she was either going to see him within the hour or had just said 'good night' to him less than an hour previously. It was only natural that he was on her mind so much given the amount of time they spent together. And really, since most of their time was spent conducting murder investigations, it meant that most of the thoughts she had about him were work related. And since she'd always gone to sleep and woke up thinking about work that she'd been thinking about Booth during those times only made sense.

With a satisfied nod at having reached such a logical conclusion, Brennan decided to turn her attention to the next question. But Angela's voice asking her to be brutally honest with her answers chose that particular moment to replay in her mind and it stopped her from going forward.

Taking a closer look at those moments, she was forced to admit that not all of her thoughts of Booth were about their investigations. In fact, not all of her thoughts were professional. And if she was being brutally honest, she might as well admit (if only to herself) to the occasional dream about her partner. Well, they were more than occasional really; they had actually become pretty regular and they were of a decidedly not professional nature. They were very, very personal – intimate even. Angela would probably cackle like a mad-woman if she had even an inkling of the intensity of those dreams, which was why Brennan had never mentioned them nor did she have any intention of ever doing so.

So, yes, she did have strong feelings for Booth. He was her best friend; the one person that was always there when she needed someone, the one that always knew what she needed, sometimes even before she did. And yes, she did turn to him whenever she needed emotional support because she knew he would be there.

At first, she hadn't wanted to; she'd certainly never meant to come to depend on him so much. But he made it so easy by always just being there that before she knew it, she was reaching for him when before she'd been used to never reaching for anyone. And now, though she knew Angela would be there if she needed someone, she couldn't imagine not having him there whenever a crisis arose.

In fact, she couldn't imagine her life without him in it anymore. Having him drag her out for coffee, lunch, dinner, nagging her about getting out of the lab at a decent hour and having a good night's sleep, going with him and Parker to the park, the Zoo or just the diner, having him put his arm around her shoulders or his hand on the small of her back – those were the moments that had come to define her life as much as her academic/professional accomplishments ever had. To lose them, to no longer have them after she'd come to depend on them, to actually look forward to them was something she didn't want to think about.

That was something that until Angela had mentioned the possibility, she had never even thought could happen. Not have Booth in her life seemed . . . simply impossible. He'd told her he'd always be there for her and his word was his bond. Even Angela had said that he would always be her friend and be there for her.

But Angela had also said that if he fell in love with someone else and married her, Brennan would no longer be his first priority. Brennan had never thought of herself as Booth's number one priority but if she stopped to analyze his behavior she could see how, next to Parker, she did seem to be the most important person in his life. And as she acknowledged that fact, she also had to acknowledge that she liked it. She liked being the most important person in his life; she liked knowing that if she called, he'd answer, liked knowing that if she needed him, he'd drop everything to rush to her side. And she was also forced to admit that she would do the same for him.

Did she want that to change? Could she envision a day when she would be okay with it changing? Was she selfless enough to wish for Booth to meet a woman that would give him the family he's always wanted, knowing that that would mean she would be relegated to a secondary plane in his life?

She was surprised at how quickly and how emphatically she arrived at the answer: NO. No, she did not want any of that to change; no, she couldn't envision a day when she would be okay with any type of change that would mean she and Booth weren't as close as they were at the moment. And no, she was most definitely not selfless enough to wish for Booth to meet the woman of his dreams, marry her and have the family he's always wanted.

_If it's just infatuation then  
Why is my heart aching  
To hold you forever  
Give a part of me I thought I'd never  
Give again to someone I could lose  
If I'm not in love with you _

If he was going to spend his life with someone it was going to be her. And what really surprised her about that thought wasn't that she had it, but how natural and right it felt to have it. It was almost as if she'd been making her way to this particular destination all along.

She still wasn't sure whether Angela was right about her being in love with Booth. Brennan had no point of reference from which to even begin to form an educated decision. For most of her adult life, she'd been convinced love was fiction and what we felt was just biological reactions.

The conclusion she arrived to, however, was that it simply didn't matter. She'd never thought she would find anyone that would make her consider that spending her life with only him would be a good idea, let alone actually make her want to do it. But she had; she actually wanted to spend the rest of her life with Booth. She wanted to know that no matter what happened she would always be his first priority – well, next to Parker, but since Parker was his son and was one of her own top priorities, she thought that was acceptable. She wanted to go to sleep in his arms every night and wake up to his Charm Smile every morning; wanted him to keep dragging her out of the lab for food or rest or to a crime scene for as long as she could make it into the lab to work.

But most of all, she thought with a sudden and fierce grin, she wanted the right to tell any and all women that even thought about pursuing him, that he was HERS. Booth was hers and only hers, no one else's. He had been since the moment he'd leaned into her personal space and demanded she pay attention to him. He'd pushed and prodded and hadn't rested until he gained access to her life. He hadn't been content with just being partners; oh, no, he had to push until they were friends and then he had to continue to push until they were best friends and confidants. Well, he now had to reap the consequences of his actions, didn't he?

She hadn't asked or even wanted him in her life but there he went and now he was so intertwined in it that to pull him out would unravel the whole thing. She could no longer envision what her life would be like without him in it and she no longer wanted to do it.

She might not know whether she was in love with him but she did know that her feelings for him were more than simply platonic and whatever he needed, she'd do her best to provide. And she also knew that he no longer had the option to look for that elsewhere. He sealed his own fate when he insisted on becoming necessary to hers. Neither had any choice in the matter any longer because, she realized, she belonged to him as much as he belonged to her.

She knew he was going to want to hear 'I love you' from her. But that was just too bad because she didn't know if she could ever say it and he was just going to have to learn to live with it. This was all of his own fault, after all. He had made himself indispensable to her and now he had to pay up.

_Why in every fantasy  
Do I feel your arms embracing me  
Lovers lost in sweet desire  
Why in dreams do I surrender  
Lying with you baby  
Someone help explain this feeling  
Someone tell me _

With a grin, that even Booth would have been afraid of, Brennan pushed up from the couch and collected her purse and coat. She turned off the lights and left the office on her way to Booth's apartment. She looked at her watch and noticed that it was just after midnight. The thought that he might not be back from his date broke her stride for a moment until she decided that if he wasn't back, she'd just used use her key and wait for him inside. And it would definitely be better all around if he did not bring his date back to his place. The idea that maybe they were already at his place or that they might be at the woman's made her hasten her steps.

If they were at his place, then the faster she interrupted them the better and if they were at the woman's, well, she'd wait for him until around one and if he wasn't back by then, she'd invoke her partner privileges and call him to tell him she needed to see him. A bit underhanded perhaps but a woman had to do what a woman had to do.

Angela had asked her to decide what she wanted for her future and what she was willing to do to make sure she had it. The answers turned out, as had all the others that night, to be surprisingly easy: she wanted Booth and she'd do pretty much whatever she had to do to make sure she had him.

With a spring in her step and whistling a happy tune, despite the fact that it was after midnight, Dr. Temperance Brennan left the Jeffersonian without looking back. She was as focused on her mission as always. This time however, her mission had nothing to do with work. She had a date with destiny and she had no intention of making it wait any longer than it already had.

_If I'm not in love with you  
What is this I'm going through  
Tonight _

_And if my heart is lying then what should I believe in  
Why do I go crazy  
Every time I think about you baby  
Why else do I want you like I do  
If I'm not in love with you _


	2. Saved the Best for Last

**Nick of Time**

**A/N:** Well, here it is!! The second chapter! I am very, very happy that you guys liked the first one so much! I still can't believe the number of reviews I got. I think I broke my personal record - thank you so much!!! I hope you like this chapter as much as the last. It's longer, almost twice as much and it is a bit angsty at the beginning but I think I deliver what I promised in the last chapter. At least, I hope I do!!! Again, thanks for reviewing and please let me know what you think of this one. Chapter 3 is being a bit more difficult to get out but I'll post it as soon as I can. Thanks to Puppet and Kerry for their help with this chapter and their encouragement. Now, enjoy!!!

**Chapter 2: Save the Best For Last**

The only sound in the otherwise silent apartment was the voices of the sportscasters coming from the TV as they narrated the day's sport highlights. Any other night, Booth, an avid sports fan, would have been riveted to the TV as he cheered or jeered depending on the outcomes. Unlike any other night, however, Booth wasn't paying his customary attention. That night, the Special Agent was too distracted by what passed for his love life those days for the scores to be little more than background noise.

He brought the beer bottle he'd been holding to his lips to take another sip even as he wondered, yet again, whether he'd done the right thing in taking Katie back home after they had dinner and not accepting her invitation to come in for a night cap. If it had been any other woman or this had been any other time in his life, the decision would not have been difficult. He'd have accepted Katie's invitation before she finished giving it or he'd have brought her back to his place. But she wasn't any other woman and this wasn't any other point in his life.

He was no longer satisfied with just having affairs, whether they were brief or not; he was ready to settle down, maybe start a family. He was getting older and dating for the sake of dating no longer appealed to him. Besides, Katie was not a woman with whom one had an affair. She was beautiful, smart, easy going, a great conversationalist and listener; she knew how to have fun but also knew how to tackle difficult subjects. In short, she was a woman a man could settle down with; exactly the type of woman he'd always been looking for.

There was just one little problem; Katie might be beautiful but she wasn't the blue-eyed, brunette that had haunted his dreams for almost five years. She might be smart but she wasn't a certified genius; she was funny but she didn't have that subtle, dry wit or sometimes childish humor that always surprised him. And while she was easy going, she didn't have the knack to push him to be his best and her knowledge of pop culture was as good as his own, there was never any reason for him to correct or explain any references. She was a great conversationalist and listener but she only used normal, every day words not scientific, technical terms that he needed a translation for and she didn't possess that awkward grace whenever she tried to comfort him that never failed to touch his heart. In other words, Katie wasn't Dr. Temperance 'Bones' Brennan.

If Booth had met Katie six years ago, he'd have thought he found the perfect woman. But six years ago he hadn't yet met Bones. Meeting her had changed him, had changed how he thought about a lot of things. His picture of the ideal woman had shifted and for the last five years, the only woman he had been able to imagine spending his life with had been her. That was the reason he hadn't been in a serious relationship since Tessa, back during the first year of his partnership with Bones; he didn't count the brief liaisons with Becca and Cam as they really hadn't been more than . . . liaisons. He hadn't met anyone else that captivated him half as much as his beautiful partner and he had been content to wait for the time when she saw the same potential for their relationship as he did.

Lately, though, he'd been growing somewhat impatient. He'd begun to doubt that that day would ever come and, paradoxically, the more he began to doubt it, the more his desire to settle down increased. And, though he hadn't meant to or wanted to, he'd begun to pull away from Bones. Subconsciously, he'd begun to prepare for the possibility that she might never see the same possibilities that he saw by pulling back and protecting himself.

And then Katie walked into his life; a gorgeous, interesting woman who made no secret of the fact she found him fascinating. At first, he'd been reluctant to go on a date with her; however discouraged he might be getting, he still hoped that in the end things would work out with Bones; five years worth of dreams were not easily forgotten after all. But having a beautiful woman pursue him had been a boost to his ego and in the end he figured he had nothing to lose by going on one date. Three dates later, he was contemplating the possibility of finally letting go of those dreams.

The sharp pain in his chest that thought created was the real reason why he hadn't stayed the night with Katie. He knew himself enough, and he respected Katie enough, to know that if he took that step with her, he would be making a commitment that would require him to lock away any hope of a future with Bones. Up until now, he just hadn't been ready to do that. He hadn't been ready to accept that the future he'd been waiting for the last four plus years was never going to happen.

But, as he sat alone in his apartment, ignoring the sports news, he had to wonder if that was the right decision. Five years was a long time to wait, especially when any sign that things might move forward had almost immediately been followed by three signs of things moving backwards. Waiting for something when there were no guarantees it'll ever come to pass was not only tiring but could also be soul-crushing. He was almost to the point where the pain of holding on would overshadow the pain of letting go. He'd never wanted it to get to this point; he'd never thought there'd ever come the day when he would willingly let those dreams go but life didn't always follow the path we'd like and you just had to roll with the punches. If his years in the military had taught him anything, it was that.

If Bones had shown the slightest hint that she would one day be ready to move their relationship forward, if he could be sure that they had a future together then he would keep holding on and would wait for her for as long as it took. But he had no such assurances, and while hope might be the last thing we lose, holding on while hope was waning soon becomes a losing battle.

He finished drinking his beer and let his head drop down onto the back of the couch with a weary sigh. Bones might call him the heart person but analyzing his emotions and second guessing his actions was something he really could do without. It left him wearier than chasing a suspect for hours on end ever could.

He really did not know what to do and there was no one he could go to for advice as no one knew just how much he cared for his partner and there really wasn't anyone he felt comfortable enough to divulge such information.

As he sat there, letting his thoughts go where they may, he began, for the first time, to imagine what life without Bones might be like. It surprised him that the images that came to mind didn't feel completely wrong; he was surprised to find that he could imagine a life without her in the first place. But then it dawned on him just what it was that he was imagining, what it would really mean to his life if those images were to come true. And the pain that followed that realization made it clear that he wasn't ready to let go – at least not quite yet. The fact that he'd been able to imagine them at all, however, also let him know that while he might not be ready at the moment, the time was coming when he would be ready.

Just as that thought formed in his mind, he heard a knock on his door and Bones calling out, "Booth? Booth! I know you're there. Come on, let me in."

_Sometimes the snow comes down in June  
Sometimes the sun goes 'round the moon  
I see the passion in your eyes  
Sometimes it's all a big surprise_

His eyes flew open as he jerked forward on the couch and automatically put the beer down on the coffee table. He looked back towards the door with a confused frown and, as ridiculous as it sounded, felt a jolt of guilt flash through him. He hadn't been doing anything wrong and yet, there he was feeling as if he'd been caught cheating on her. Trust her to choose that particular moment to show up; if it'd been anyone else, he'd have thought that she somehow had sensed what was going on with him. As it was, she was probably there to talk to him about work or something.

"Booth! Come on, open up," she called again. He got up with a grunt and hurried to open the door before she could wake up all his neighbors.

"I'm coming, Bones," he called out. "Jeez, hold your horses." He really couldn't get over the coincidence of her showing up just as he decided that moving on was an option. It was almost as if she had some sort of radar or telepathic connection to him. With a snort, he wondered what her reaction would be if he ever mentioned that theory to her; shaking his head at the thought of what would undoubtedly be a long lecture, he opened the door.

"Oh," she said, smiling and dropping the hand that had been raised for her next knock. "There you are."

"Yes, here I am," he said, and couldn't help but smile back. "And so are you apparently. Want to tell me what you're doing here at," he looked down to check his watch, "almost midnight?"

"I needed to talk to you," she told him.

"And it couldn't wait until a more decent hour?" he asked her, leaning against the door.

"No, it couldn't," she shook her head. "Can I come in? It's kind of important."

"Sure, why not? Come on in," he told her, sweeping his arm and stepping to the side to let her walk in. She smiled at him one more time before walking past him. He frowned after her; there was something different about her. She was way too chipper for the time of night; actually she was way too chipper for her, period. There actually seemed to be a spring in her step and yet, she also appeared to be nervous. And Bones was never nervous around him.

"Do you want a beer?" He asked her as he followed her into the living room and then walked into the kitchen.

"No, I'm okay, thanks," she told him as she let her purse drop onto the coffee table. She took off her coat and draped it over the arm of the couch. She sat down on the couch and rested her crossed fingers on knees that move up and down due to the tapping of her feet.

"So," Booth said as he came back into the living room and sat down next to her. "What was it that you needed to talk to me about?"

"I just," se began before she trailed off. She'd come here with a purpose but now that she was there, she didn't know how to start. "I just wanted to . . ."

"Bones, is everything alright?" Booth asked, noticing how she was twisting her fingers. Yes, she was definitely nervous and that was beginning to freak him out. Bones simply did not do nervous. "Is it your Dad, Russ? Angela? Are they okay? Did something . . .?"

"No, no," she shook her head as she hurried to reassure him. "They're alright. This has nothing to do with them."

"Okay, good," Booth said with a nod before taking a sip of his beer. "So, you wanna tell me what's the problem?"

"There's no problem," she answered. "Not really. I just needed to talk to you. I . . . we're okay, right? I mean, after our fight, everything's . . . okay?" That was not what she meant to say at all. Obviously, though, it must have been weighing on her mind more than she'd thought if it had come out like that.

"Yes, of course, we're fine," he answered immediately. "I thought we'd already settled this last week."

"Yes," she nodded. "I just wanted to make sure."

"I see," he nodded, though he sounded as if he really didn't see. Bones was not someone who usually needed reassurance. "Well, are you sure now?"

"Yes, thank you," she nodded again.

"No problem," he shrugged. "That's what I'm here for." He took a sip of his beer and settled back on the couch. "So, what were you up to tonight?"

"I worked on my book for a little bit," she answered as she settled down next to him. "I chatted with Angela for a few minutes; I think she and Hodgins went out."

"I'm not surprised," Booth nodded. "He's been wining and dining her on a pretty regular basis ever since they got back together."

"I'm not sure exactly what that means," she told him, "but he has spent a lot of time taking her out."

"That is exactly what that means," he grinned at her. She gave him a small grin in return before she lowered her gaze to her hands.

"I also did a lot of thinking," she told him, raising her gaze to his.

"Now, there's a surprise," he murmured as he raised his bottle to take another long swallow. "You doing a lot of thinking."

"I analyzed my life," she kept going, not paying attention to his sarcasm. "What I want for my future and what I'd have to do to make sure I get it. And I made some decisions about it that I thought you should know about."

"Okay," he noted. "So, what did you decide?" She took a deep breath and turned to face him head on.

"I think we should become lovers," she informed him, as calmly as if she was giving her opinion on what to have for dinner.

"Yy. . . wwh. . . what?" he stammered, staring at her with wide eyes, grateful that he'd already swallowed the beer, otherwise he'd have choked on it or spewed it all over the place. "What did you just say?"

"I thought about this and I think we should become lovers," she repeated.

"But but . . . you, you. . ." Booth was so flustered he couldn't form a sentence in his head, much less actually speak one. "You're kidding, right?"

"No, I'm not," she shook her head. "I'm very serious."

"But you can't just show up here and say something like that!" he cried out, throwing his hands up.

"Why not?" she asked genuinely confused.

"Because . . . it's . . . that's just not how it's done," he finally told her, after opening and closing his mouth half a dozen times, looking for a reason.

"Then how should I have done it?" she asked him, tilting her head to the side and studying him, intrigued by his discomfiture. She wasn't sure what it said about her that she found his reaction reassuring but knowing he was nervous calmed her and somehow made having this conversation easier.

"I don't know!" he shook his head. "I just know you don't go around telling men you want to be their lover."

"I didn't go around telling men, Booth," she protested, starting to get angry. "I told you. And I really don't see why you're having such a hard time with this. Unless," she added, as a possibility she hadn't really considered occurred to her, "you don't want me?" She meant to state it but it came out sounding like a question. "You don't find me attractive?"

"No," he denied and when her face fell, he hurried to explain. "I mean, of course I find you attractive. You're beautiful!"

"But you don't want me?" she pressed.

"No, I mean yes, of course I do, it's just," he stopped talking and let out a frustrated breath. He finished his beer in one gulp and then said, "it's just not that simple, Bones."

"I don't see why not," she retorted. "We're both single, consenting adults, who find each other attractive, want and care for each other. Why does it have to be complicated?"

"Because," he answered, desperately trying to thinking of something. "What about work? You know the FBI doesn't allow . . . lovers to work together. They'd break us up." Even as he came with what he thought she'd find the strongest argument, he knew it was a bit of a crock and he had to wonder why he was fighting this so hard when it was everything he'd wanted for the last five years.

_Cause there was a time when all I did was wish,  
You'd tell me this was love  
It's not the way I hoped or how I planned  
But somehow it's enough_

"That would be absurd and counter-productive," she told him in a voice that made him assume she'd already thought of it; which wasn't exactly the truth. She'd given only a fleeting thought to this part of the equation, more concerned on how to inform him of her decisions. Still, she knew what she was saying was true; that line of his hadn't really made much sense to her. She'd kept to it because it was what he wanted and she hadn't really allowed herself to examine whether _she_ wanted it. But now that she had, she realized that the line had been crossed long ago, emotionally if not physically.

"Our record speaks for itself," she continued, looking him in the eye and silently daring him to contradict her. "We have the highest conviction record of any division and haven't compromised any cases despite our emotional attachment. And despite the fact," she went on deliberately, "that we've both broken more than a few rules. I colluded with my father, a wanted criminal, assaulted people, lied to the FBI and then helped my father to escape the first time you were kidnapped; the second time, I stole and allowed evidence to be destroyed before I convinced your brother to steal a body from federal custody."

When he opened his mouth to object, she just looked at him – once again daring him to argue. When he closed his mouth without saying anything as there really was nothing he could say, she continued.

"And you've flown across the country without orders, walked out of a hospital with broken ribs, allowed my dad and brother to escape – more than once, been suspended from and almost lost your job; we've both killed to protect the other, you've taken a bullet meant for me," her voice cracked at the memory, "And we both know we'd do the same all over again if necessary. Or are you telling me that nothing would change, that you wouldn't do whatever it took to protect me if we begin a physical relationship?"

This time he didn't even open his mouth, just gave her a tight nod. There really was nothing else he could do; she was right and they both knew it.

"So," she continued when he chose not to say anything, knowing that she had to push her point because Booth could be beyond stubborn when he wanted to, "you tell me, why would the FBI have any problems with a change of status in our relationship when we've already proven that our emotional attachment won't compromise our cases?"

"Bones, you do realize that everything you just said," he pointed out after a few seconds of silence, "is exactly the reason why the FBI doesn't allow agents that are romantically involved to be partners?"

"But I'm not an agent, Booth," she pointed out logically.

"But you do work for the FBI," he argued, "and are expected to follow the same guidelines."

"I worked for the Jeffersonian," she corrected him. "I don't have to follow the FBI's rules. Besides, like I said, it's not as if anything would fundamentally change. Why are you fighting this so hard, Booth?" She asked a few seconds later, tilting her head and letting some aggravation show through. "We care for each other, we're attracted to each other, we _like_ each other and we're single," she studied him closely as she said the last and was able to catch his slight wince. She ignored it because if he really considered himself committed to that other woman, he wouldn't just wince; he would have already told her he was no longer single. "Why are you so resistant to the idea of moving forward in our relationship?"

'Why was he resisting this so much?' he asked himself again. Ah, yes, now he remembered.

"Because," he told her seriously, leaning forward to set down the beer bottle and turning to look at her, "deciding to become someone's lover is not the same as deciding what you're having for lunch; it's not a problem you work through or a mathematical equation to figure out. It's a very intimate relationship, both physical _and_ emotional. Yes, liking and caring for each other and being attracted to each other is always a good idea but that's not all there is to it – or at least," he added before she could object, "that's not all there should be to it. If it is, then you're little more than friends with benefits. And though, some people are okay with that, and yes, even though," he nodded when she opened her mouth and he just knew she was going to remind him of his relationships with Becca and Cam, "I've had a few of those myself, I can't have that kind of relationship with you, Bones." He told her firmly, shaking his head. "Some relationships are too complicated, too important and should never be easy. And I just," he paused to sigh heavily, maybe her coming here at this particular moment was a sign – just not the sign he'd hoped for, "I _can't_ be someone you satisfy biological urges with. I . . . I need more than that."

This was as close as he'd gotten to getting everything he wanted the last five years and it might be as close as he'd ever get. Part of him was tempted, if she'd gotten this far then maybe, if he took her up on her offer and waited some more, he might eventually get everything he wanted; part of him was also tempted to take what he could get and be happy about it. But he knew he had to turn her down because it wasn't enough, what she was offering just wasn't enough. What would happen when her 'biological urges' were sated and she no longer wanted him? Or worse, if she met someone else she wanted to satisfy them with? He wouldn't be able to go back to just being partners and friends after being with her, in time both their partnership and friendship would suffer and probably end.

He wanted her body and her heart not just her body; he wouldn't, he couldn't settle for anything else. So he sat back and waited for her response; he was pretty sure she'd either tell him he was too emotional and withdraw the offer or try to convince him her idea had merit and he was being too emotional _before_ she gave up and withdrew the offer. But as was usual with her, she surprised him.

"I didn't say anything about 'satisfying biological urges' now, did I?" she asked, smiling enigmatically.

_And now we're standing face to face  
Isn't this world a crazy place?  
Just when I thought a chance had passed  
You go and save the best for last  
_

No, she hadn't said that at all, he realized abruptly. Actually, now that he was thinking about what she had and hadn't said and not just reacting, he also realized that she hadn't really explained why she'd reached the decision that they should become lovers. He'd assumed that it was because her . . . biological needs were asserting themselves and she'd decided that he would be a good candidate to satisfy them. But maybe he'd been wrong. This was Bones, after all, he should know better than to make any type of assumptions. With that realization, the hope he'd never been able to lock away, flared high.

"No," he answered her, studying her closer than before; something she hadn't thought possible, "you didn't. You haven't really said why you decided this would be a good idea or why you even started thinking about this, have you? You've given me some excuses, but you know me," he said slowly, really thinking about it even as he spoke, "you know that this is one step I neither could nor would not take lightly; you know it would change our whole relationship – probably forever. We couldn't go back to the way things were and you know that. So, why would you risk it? Why would you jeopardize our partnership and friendship?" he knew both were vitally important to her. "What would make you start to think about this in the first place? What do you think would happen when it ended?"

"Who said anything about it having to end?" she asked him, her eyes gleaming with some inside knowledge that had his mouth dropping open. He really should know better by now, he thought as he closed his mouth and shook his head.

"So, you gonna tell me what got you thinking of this in the first place?" he asked again when he recovered from the last shock.

"I just . . ." Brennan decided that it might be a good idea if she just told him things from the beginning. Like she'd thought earlier, he was the one she always went to when facing emotional dilemmas; if anyone would understand, it'd be him. "When Angela stopped by my office earlier, she told me that I was in love with you. I denied it," she continued, ignoring Booth's wide eyes. "but she insisted and before she left, she asked me to please think about what she'd said."

"And did you?" Booth wanted to know, hope flaring brighter than before.

"I wasn't able to think of anything else," she admitted, ruefully.

"And what did you decide?" he asked, when she didn't continue. "Are you . . . in love with me?" He really couldn't believe he was asking her that; this was not how he'd ever imagined this would go – when he allowed himself to think about this moment at all. Though, he really shouldn't be surprised; Bones never did anything the easy or conventional way. He'd admitted to himself a long time ago that was one of the reasons he found her so fascinating.

"I don't know," she told him, honestly. It was a bit disappointing to be sure but he would have been more surprised if she'd said yes; and, the most important thing, he realized, was that she hadn't said no. As he couldn't really mask the disappointment, she saw it on his face and she hurried to reassure him. "Booth, I stopped thinking in terms of love when I was fifteen years old; I've never even considered the possibility of falling in love. I have no frame of reference on which to base that kind of decision."

Booth nodded; given her history, it really wasn't surprising that she didn't know how to recognize her feelings. What was surprising was that she'd come this far.

"But," she went on, "one of the things Angela told me to think about was what my life had been like before I met you, what it's been like since I met you and which do I think is better. She also told me to think about what I want in my future and to analyze why is it that I let you get away with things I wouldn't let anyone else get away with. And I came to the conclusion that it doesn't really matter. I don't know what love is, Booth," she added, "or if I'm in love with you but I know that I've never felt like this before and I can't imagine feeling like this about any one else. I also know that when I look into the future the only constants I see are my work and you. And I know that the idea of you with anyone else is not something I . . . like."

The emphasis she put on 'like' made it clear it was something of an understatement. There was also something in her tone that made him think that last part hadn't been said idly.

"Wait a minute," he said, narrowing his eyes. "Did Angela also happen to mentioned that I was on a date tonight?"

"She might have," she answered, shrugging and trying to sound nonchalant but wasn't quite successful.

"Is that what this is all about?" he asked, not sure what he should feel – flattered or angry.

"No," she shook her head but he gave her the look that said he knew there was more to it than that. "Well, not completely; it just served to . . . highlight certain things I'd done my best to not analyze before."

"Like?" he asked, intrigued, as always, by how her brain worked.

"Like why," she answered, "I've never liked it when you date someone, why I've always felt as if that was a threat to me when we've never had that type of relationship. You've always done your best to reassure me you'll be there for me and for the most part you've been successful and yet, there's always been a part of me that wondered if one of those women might be more important to you than me. Angela's pointing that out directly only made it impossible for me to keep avoiding the issue." She paused for a minute to take a deep breath and regroup and he could only stare at her in surprise, this was the most emotionally open she'd been with him without him first nagging her into it.

"You know, Booth," she told him, looking up at him and looking very irritated all of a sudden, "I never asked you to push yourself into my life and become my best friend; I never asked or wanted to have someone there, guarding my back and supporting me no matter what happened. I was happy relying only on myself, knowing that I didn't need anyone else because I was perfectly able to take care of things myself. But you waltzed into my life and weren't happy with being just my partner; no, you had to push for more and you had to prove that some people do stick around, that no matter what happens, some people are capable of making a commitment and sticking to it and not letting those that count on them down. You had to go and make ridiculous speeches about how making love's all about finding that one person that makes becoming one possible, how there's someone out there for everyone and how we're the center and we'll always hold; you had to show me that having kids could be a rewarding and enriching experience and that despite what anyone else might think, you don't think I lack empathy or that I'm cold but just awkward and that that's fine with you. You just had to prove that there's nothing you won't do to make sure I'm happy and safe and you _had_ to make me wonder whether there was some truth in your belief that love exists." She paused to take another deep breath and he could only gape at her, wondering where the heck that had come from.

"Well, you know what?" she continued, just as forcibly. "I didn't ask for any of that but you insisted on doing it anyway, so this is _your_ doing. I don't know if I'm in love with you but I do know that you're mine and I have no intention of losing you to anyone else. So, I want you to call this . . . woman," and he could swear that wasn't the word she wanted to use but was trying to be polite, "tomorrow and tell her you won't see her again." She crossed her arms when she finished speaking, tilted her chin into her 'I'm not budging' face and looked at him, clearly expecting him to agree with her.

For his part, he just continued to gape at her; he had no idea what to think or say in response to all that. She'd, quite literally, thrown him the most unexpected curve ever and given all the curves she'd thrown him since they met, that was saying something.

"You," he began to speak, not really knowing what he was going to say, "can't just come in here and tell me I belong to you and that I can't see anyone else." For some reason, that was what came out of his mouth. Maybe because it was the last thing she'd said and he was pretty sure he'd never agree to belonging to her – or to belonging to anyone, for that matter.

"Why not?" she asked him, so sure of herself and more than a little smug. "You do it to me all the time; you've been doing it almost from the moment we met."

_  
All of the nights you came to me  
When some silly girl had set you free  
You wondered how you'd make it through  
I wondered what was wrong with you _

"What?!" he asked, eyes once again opening wide; if she kept this up, his eyes were going to jump out of his face and end up on the floor. "When?! How?!" He asked, indignantly, "I mean I've never . . ."

"You've never?" she asked, interrupting him. She chuckled and shook her head in disbelief. "Oh, please, who are you trying to kid, Booth? Me or you? But if you want examples, I'll give you examples," the way she was so sure and calm started to worry him just a little bit. "How about all those times you somehow managed to tracked me down while I was on a date because something 'very important' had come up; or how about all those background checks you've ran on anyone I've dated – despite the fact that I've repeatedly asked you not to run them; or how you're always putting your arm around my shoulders or your hand on the small of my back letting everyone know that you have the right to touch me and guide me to wherever you want me to go; or, how about . . ."

"Ok, okay," Booth stopped her, raising his hands. "I get the point." He hadn't thought she'd noticed all of that or that she'd realized what it meant. Just when did she get so good at understanding these types of things anyway?

"Yes," she nodded as if there had never been any doubt. "I think that somewhere along the line we've both decided that we belong to each other."

"But, but," he stammered once again. She just kept throwing him surprise after surprise and he just couldn't seem to get his bearings. Her confusing him was nothing new but this was on a whole new level – this was a doozy even for her. "I thought you didn't believe in people belonging to each other. Haven't you always said that you belong only to yourself and no one else?"

"That's true," she acknowledged. "But I've come to realize that sometimes you can meet someone who gets to know you for who you really are and accept you just as you are without asking you to change a thing, someone who brings out the best in you and with whom you can be more than what you were alone. When you find someone like that," she paused for a minute before she smiled slightly and added, "well, belonging to that person is not so bad. You don't lose anything important and whatever you might lose, it's more than compensated by what you gain." When he continued to look at her as if she'd grown another head and didn't say anything, she started to feel self-conscious and asked him, "Am I wrong?"

"No, no you're not," he answered, shaking his head. He shifted in his seat and rubbed the back of his neck as he thought about what to say. He'd spent the past five years trying to get her to understand what she'd just explained in less than five minutes; he didn't know whether that made him feel inadequate because it took so long for him to get his point across or whether it made him feel proud that he finally got it across. Beyond all that, though, he couldn't quite get over the timing; trust her to show up just as he was getting ready to give up. "It's just . . ."

"Just what?" she asked when he trailed off and didn't continue.

"I don't know, Bones," he finally said, throwing up his hands and chuckling ruefully. "Can you understand how surprising this whole thing is? How it's just come out of left field and I just don't know what to think."

"Left field?" she asked, frowning in confusion. "What field? There's no field." He couldn't help it, he laughed. That was such a Bones-like reaction that for perhaps the first time that evening, he felt on solid ground.

"It's just an expression, Bones," he explained. "It means that this conversation seems to have come out of nowhere and I just . . . I'm not sure how to react or feel about it."

"Don't you want m. . .," she started to just say me but that was a little too direct, even for her, so she changed it. "Don't you want _us_?" She asked instead and tilted her head, not quite able to mask how insecure she was starting to feel.

"I do," Booth hurried to reassure her when he saw that flash of vulnerability she had only ever let Angela and himself see. "You have to know I do," he added, looking deep into her eyes to show his sincerity. As he looked at her sitting there, back straight and chin held proudly up, trying to look calm, collected and sure of herself while her wide eyes, twisting fingers and lightly twitching mouth told him how nervous she was, he realized once again that she was all he'd ever wanted. Suddenly, he was immeasurably glad that Bones had finally realized what they could have because, while he would have been justified in moving on if she hadn't, he now understood that that would have meant settling for second best and that wouldn't have been fair to either of them

"Then what's wrong?" Bones' confused question brought him out of his musings. Why was he hesitating? Why wasn't he reaching out to grab everything he's wanted for the past few years when it was being handed to him on a silver platter?

"Nothing," he said, shaking his head but now, it was her look that said she knew there was something he wasn't saying. "I just . . . I need to know that you're sure about this, Temperance."

"When have I ever told you something I wasn't sure about?" she asked him.

"Rarely if ever," he was forced to answer. "But this is big, Bones, this is huge and like I said I can't take this step – _we_ can't take this step unless we're fully committed to it. I won't be able to go back to what we were before if it doesn't work out. We can't just try this to see if it works and return to what we had before if it doesn't."

"I know that, Booth," Brennan told him. "Why would you think otherwise? You know I always think before I act."

_  
Cause how could you give your love to someone else  
And share your dreams with me  
Sometimes of everything you're looking for  
It's the one thing you can't see  
_

"Yes, I know," he answered, "because I know you and it's because I do know you that I need to know you're sure. Temperance," he added in a soft voice when he saw her open her mouth to protest, "I've known you for five years, I've heard more about your relationships than I care to remember. I know your views on monogamous relationships, Bones. I just need to be sure you've really thought this through. I need," he hesitated, not sure he wanted to say the next part but knowing that if they were to have a chance, he'd have to be honest, "I need to know that I'll be enough; that you won't find you need something else and . . ." he trailed off, not really needing to go on, both knew he was referring to that time she'd dated two men because they gave her different things.

"Booth," she nodded, understanding why he needed the reassurance and for once, sure she could give it, "you were the one that told me that there's someone out there for everyone, right?"

"Yes," he agreed.

"And you were right," she told him. "It just took me a while to realize that you're that someone for me. Booth," she told him earnestly, shifting forward to hold his hands, "you're more than enough; you've always been more than enough."

"But I'm not as smart as you," he pointed out.

"No, you are not," she agreed, too easily for his taste but he went on. This was an important point.

"So, won't you feel the need for more intellectual stimulation than I can give you?" he asked.

"You don't have to be as smart as I am to provide me with intellectual stimulation," she told him smiling. "In fact, I think you've challenged me intellectually more than anyone I've known – not because you know more than I do but because you don't. You're always asking me to explain things on simpler terms; you make it impossible for me to hide behind academic, technical terms or lofty ideals. You bring me back to the real world, Booth. More than that, you see things so differently from me that you're always challenging my views, making me rethink things. You make me see things in ways I've never thought of and I like that. Besides, if I ever want a purely intellectual debate I can always have that with Hodgins or Cam or anyone else at the lab."

"I guess that's true," he conceded, beginning to grin as he finally let himself believe that this was happening.

"Yes, it is," she nodded. "And I know you're smarter than you let anyone believe," she told him and when he made a face, she just continued not giving him a chance to retort. "But, Booth, more than challenging me intellectually, you challenge me emotionally – something no one's been able to do since I was 15. I don't need anything or anyone else if I have you. Our relationship is more emotionally intimate than any relationship I've ever had. The only reason I've needed other relationships these past five years has been because we haven't had a physical relationship and I've had . . ."

"You've had biological needs to take care of," he completed for her.

"Yes, I have," she agreed, unapologetically; there was nothing wrong with that, after all. "But if we embark on a physical relationship as well as maintaining and deepening our emotional connection, then I don't foresee any reason to need anything else."

"Okay," he nodded slowly, thinking that that took care of all his doubts.

"Okay?" she asked. "Does that mean that you would like us to become lovers?"

"Yes," he nodded. "But can we call it something else? I don't really like that word too much."

"But it is a perfectly descriptive word for what we're going to . . ." whatever else she was going to say was lost as he leaned forward and kissed her. As she forgot whatever she was going to say and surrendered to the kiss, Booth thought that he finally found the perfect way to stop her from arguing. That was the last thought he had until they finally came up for air.

_  
But now we're standing face to face  
Isn't this world a crazy place?  
Just when I thought a chance had passed  
You go and save the best for last  
Sometimes of everything you're looking for  
It's the one thing you can't see_

Kissing Bones was even better than he'd imagined and he'd imagined it quite a lot. It was hot and sweet and tender and exciting; it was filled with the anticipation of the unknown even as it was underlined by the warmth of familiarity. Kissing her was everything kissing the love of your life should be like. When he finally managed to pulled back, it was only to drop kisses along her jaw. Her skin was soft and smelled of oranges from her body wash mixed with the antiseptic from the lab and it was intoxicatingly _Bones_.

"So," he murmured against her throat as her head fell back against the couch, "we're really doing this, huh?"

"Yes," she answered her voice husky and breathy. It was a tone of voice he'd never heard from her and immediately went to his head. _He'd_ made her sound like that just by kissing her. Before he kissed her again to see if he could make her even more breathless, he decided that he needed to see how she looked. Because if she sounded like that then she'd have to look . . .

Yes, she looked as mind-blowingly good as she sounded; he decided when he pulled back just enough to see her. Her lips were swollen, rosy and slick, her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were half-closed and had a sleepy, languorous look to them – she looked like she'd been kissed within an inch of her life and had enjoyed every second of it.

"Christ," he whispered reverently, "you look beautiful," before he leaned forward again and kissed her once more. This kiss was hotter, harder, deeper; it wasn't so much exploration as possession and her response let him know that the possession went both ways.

"What happens next?" he asked her, the next time they paused for breath.

"Huh?" she asked absently; for once much more interested in the physical activity they were involved in than in talking. But as she was beneath him on his couch with both their shirts off and her bra hanging from one arm, she figured her lack of attention was more than merited.

"I asked," Booth repeated, pulling back just enough so that he could look into her eyes, "where do we go from here?" He was asking her because she always had the answers and because it was still up to her.

"Now," she answered, raking her nails down his back and leaning forward just enough to nip his bottom lip, "we go on as before – except we have sex."

"We go on as before?" he repeated, pulling back even more. "The only change you see us making is that we have sex?" He asked her, it was obvious he didn't like that.

"Yes," she answered, she could tell by his expression that there would be no more kissing until this was resolved. With a silent sigh, she pushed herself onto her elbows before continuing, "we keep doing our jobs to the best of our abilities and we explore our more intimate relationship while we're off duty – making sure that one doesn't impact the other." When he continued to frown and didn't lean back to continue kissing, she frowned back and said, "we spend most of our off time together anyway, Booth. We're together all day with the exception of the few activities we practice in our own, the time we spend apart at work and the nights. The only difference I can see is that we'll be spending our nights together from now on too. Other than that. . ." she shrugged, indicating she really didn't expect much to change. "You're not one of those men that thinks that because we're a couple we have to spend every waking hour together, are you? Because I really like doing some things by myself; I need some alone time."

"No, I'm not," he shook his head, wondering where she'd heard the term 'alone time'. "I also like to have time to myself; I think it's healthy to have separate interests, especially when we do so much together." He also had some activities he did with his friends he had no intention of giving up.

"Good," she nodded and pulled him back down.

"You do expect us to spend our nights together, then?" he asked some time later, as he nipped her collarbone.

"Oh, yes," she said and he wasn't sure whether she was responding to his question or his kiss. A second later, she clarified. "We have five years of pent up sexual tension to resolve; I don't think we're going to be done anytime soon, do you?" She asked him with a knowing look in her eyes.

"No," he shook his head, lowering his head to her breast. "I think it's going to take us a long, long time," he told her just before he sucked her nipple.

"Seeley!" she cried out, the first time she'd ever called him by his first name and it went straight to his groin; he hadn't thought it possible, but he got even harder. "You know," she said, panting when he switched breasts, "we should probably move in together. I mean," she stopped to moan as he nipped the lower side of her breast and she promptly forgot what it was she'd been saying.

"You want to move in together?" he asked as he kissed her way up her chest. As enthralling as her body was, the notion of moving in with her was even more thrilling.

"Well," she said, trying to catch her breath, "I think it only makes sense since we'll be spending much of our time together. If we don't," she paused as they kissed once more and it took her a few seconds to remember what she was saying when they came up for air. "It'll be a waste of money to pay two rents when one apartment will more than likely not be used," she finally said.

"That makes sense," frankly she didn't care how she explained it as long as, at the end of the day, they were living together.

"Actually," she said a few moments later when he pulled back to unzip and pull down her pants, thus giving her a few seconds for clear thinking, "maybe we should look to buy a bigger place." That slowed him down some and he looked up at her with one eyebrow raised in question.

"Well," she told him, shrugging, "we're going to need the space. Parker needs his own room," he couldn't help the rise of emotions at hearing her take his son into consideration when planning their future, "I need an office and I'm sure you'd like one too. I think we need four rooms at least."

Booth had gone back to getting her pants off and was throwing them over her shoulder when the number she said penetrated the thick fog of lust clouding his brain. "Four? You want a guest bedroom?" he guessed.

"No, well," she answered as he came back down on top of her and she put her arms around him. "A guest bedroom would be nice but I was thinking more of a nursery." After all the surprises she'd thrown at him that night, he'd been sure nothing she ever said again would surprise him – he'd been wrong. At the word 'nursery', he stopped all activity and pulled back, looking as if she'd just punched him.

"Nursery?" he asked, not sure he wanted an answer but needing to hear one.

"Yes," she nodded. "I mean, you're bound to want another child down the road, aren't you? You're too good a father; you love Parker too much to not want another child."

"I would love to have a baby with you," he told her, whispering; thinking that he couldn't be so lucky as to get everything he'd ever wanted. He loved her and he'd come to terms with Parker being his only son if they ever began a romantic relationship; he'd heard her views on children enough times to ever hope for more. "But I thought you didn't want any?"

"I love Parker," she told him, cradling his cheek in her hand and looking deep into his eyes. "And I love how you are with him. After being around him and taking care of Andy last year, I think I understand how you feel about parenthood and I think I'd like to try it."

"God, Temperance," he told her, kissing her deeply. "I love you so much." They kissed for a few moments more before he pulled back and grinning at her told her, "you know, everything you've been saying – living together, having kids, making a permanent commitment to each other – it all sounds an awful lot like marriage." She pulled her head a bit away and tilted it as she thought about that.

"You're right," she told him. "It does," she thought about it a few seconds more and then nodded, "Ok, I'll marry you."

There went his jaw hitting the floor again; he was going to need to go the cardiologist after this because so many surprises so close together couldn't possibly be good for his heart.

"Excuse me?" he asked. "What did you just say?"

"I said 'I'll marry you'," she answered and she couldn't hide her smug smile at his reaction. When all he could say was, 'but, but, but,' she took pity on him and explained.

"Booth, I might think marriage is necessary and it might not be high on my list of priorities," truth be told it wasn't anywhere on her list of priorities. "But I know it's on yours; I know that you're enough of a traditionalist that you won't be comfortable without us formalizing our relationship. And while I don't think a piece of paper will make our commitment any more valid or binding, you do. So, I'll do it. My objections to it are academic; I know you won't stop me from being who I am, you won't think of me as your property or try to tell me what to do."

"Of course I won't," he vehemently denied.

"I know," she nodded. "Because you love me for me; I already told you that I accept the fact that we belong to each other, getting married is just another way of saying that – another step down the same road. So, I'll marry you."

"In a church?" he couldn't help but ask.

"Don't push it, Booth," she told him, giving him a mock frown. He laughed as he leaned down to resume making love to the love of his life. He'd had all but given up on ever having her but there they were at last, almost naked, making love on his couch, having planned to spend the rest of their lives together. When the evening began, that had been the last place he'd expected to be in and the one place he'd most wanted to be in. It was going to take him a while to finally believe it but he'd get there because he finally had her where he'd wanted her – beneath him.

"I love you, Temperance," he said right before sealing his lips to her. She didn't reciprocate but he hadn't been expecting her to and he didn't need her to. As the saying went, actions speak louder than words and Temperance Brennan had just told him in the loudest voice she could that she loved him – she wouldn't have shown up at his place, telling him they should be lovers and then agree to marry him and have his baby if she didn't. She might never tell him she loved him, but that was okay as she said earlier it didn't really matter because they finally acknowledged that they belonged to each other and they weren't letting go. That was all that mattered, really; they had each other and they were never letting go.

_Sometimes the snow comes down in June  
Sometimes the sun goes 'round the moon  
Just when I thought a chance had passed  
You go and save the best for last  
You went and saved the best for last  
_


	3. Breathe

**Nick of Time**

**Disclaimer: **No, they're not mine and I make no money from them. I do this entirely for my own benefit and enjoyment - though if you take into account how much I stress about it sometimes, I think I'm actually losing!!! ;)

**A/N: **I want to apologize for taking so long in getting this out but real life caught up with both me and my beta so that I wasn't able to get it out sooner. First, it was hard to write it because well, I'm not really comfortable writing smut and then I realized that I wasn't going to get everything I wanted to say in one chapter - so, surprise, surprise, this will be at least 5 chapters long! I should really have known better than to say it would be and you should have known better than to believe me!!! lol. Anyway, I got about two thirds of what I wanted to say done but then musie took a hike cause I just didn't feel like writing and then my stuff finally arrived from the States!!!! Only, it was way, way more than I had thought. Who knew I had accumulated so much? I guess, I knew but I was still surprise. Anyhow, I spent all day last Wednesday trying to put my room to rights and it literally took me all day - from bringing the stuff here to hanging the last blouse, shelving the last book and finally making my bed, it was all about twelve hours. I was dead by the time I was done; I had no desire to write one word - I didnt even read half a chapter of any fic!!! The only time I dont read is when I'm sick or dead tired, apparently. So, since Easter here means that everyone takes a four day weekend, I figured I would too and I didn't even think about writing!!! And then I got busy with other stuff these last three days and well, I just haven't been able to write. But, this and the next chapters are written and betaed!! I still have that last scene to write, which I'll add as an epilogue and with any luck won't take me too long to write. The next chapter will be another long one, 15 pages and this one ended up being 11 and the last scene will probably be about 8 to 10 pages, I had to break them up!! But that means, you get to read this now and whenever I finally finish the last scene. I have to apologize to anyone that reviewed the last chapter if I didn't get around to thanking you in a reply. Live has been a little crazy lately but you have to know how much I appreciate each and ever review. This little fic has broken all my previous records and I can only say 'thank you'. I'll try and reply to everyone that is kind enough to let me know what you think of this chapter. For those of you that read my other fics, Aliens and the Points series and if there's anyone that reads my Atlantis fic, I promise I'll get to them. In fact, as soon as I finish this last scene, I'll work on Aliens and the Atlantis fic and then I'll write the next one shot. Hopefully, it'll be soon! Ok, thanks to Pup for all her help and to everyone that's review and on with the show!!!!

**Chapter 3: Breathe**

_I can feel the magic floating in the air  
Being with you gets me that way  
I watch the sunlight dance across your face and I've  
Never been this swept away_

The sunlight streaming from the window gradually made its way across the floor and onto the bed, highlighting the couple tangled together under the covers. When it finally reached their faces, the direct heat and light brought them up from their deep sleep.

Brennan scrunched her nose and buried her face into the pillow when she felt the sun on her face. She knew it was Saturday and, for once, she actually wanted to sleep in but the sun on her face was making that impossible. She could have sworn that she'd closed her blinds the night before; she always closed her blinds before retiring for the night. In fact, she realized with a frown, her bed was situated so that the sun never reached it until late in the afternoon. She might not be a late sleeper normally, but on the rare occasions when she did want to sleep late, there was nothing she liked less than having the sun on her face wake her up.

The mystery of just why the sun was hitting her face, forced her to blink her eyes open. For a couple of seconds, she was disoriented; that she wasn't in her bedroom was apparent almost instantly. What she couldn't remember was exactly where she was. The feel of a familiar, heavy arm around her waist and, a smell that was familiar to her since she'd been breathing it in for the past five years, brought back all her memories of the night before.

She blinked a couple of times as she remembered in detail everything that had happened; from Angela talking to her, to her emotional discovery, to her talk with Booth. It all came back and immediately brought a smile to her face – a smug and satisfied smile. As the enormity of what had happened registered, she braced herself for the panic, the fear, the restlessness, the urge to run and hide that had always accompanied even the slightest hint that this might develop. But it didn't come.

She had no desire to run, to hide or to take back what had happened. Being with Booth had . . . defied the laws of physics; she'd actually felt one with him. It was a feeling she'd never experienced and one she wouldn't give up for anything. No, she didn't want to run; she wanted to turn around and hug and kiss Booth. So, she did just that.

She turned around slowly, trying not to dislodge his arm or wake him up if he was asleep. Though, as a former sniper, he should have had razor sharp reflexes and woke up at her first stirrings. With a mischievous grin, she though of how she was going to tease him about that later on. When she finally finished turning and saw his face relaxed in sleep and bathed in the morning sunlight, all thoughts of teasing flew right out of her head.

Brennan was not a fanciful woman; she had never dreamt of a prince charming that would come charging in on a white horse, sweep her up and ride with her into the sunset. She'd never believed in fairy tales and she'd been sure that love was just the mix of the right chemicals in the brain. Her fantasies had all involved perfect sets of remains from some past era that she could study and identify. She'd always been grounded in reality and had had little to no time for flights of fancy; even her writing, while fictional, was based on real science and real cases.

Her life and her nature just did not lend itself to the more esoteric aspects of life. But, despite all her logic and rational way of looking at life, in that moment, watching Booth sleep next to her and with the memory of the night before still fresh in her mind, she could almost accept the idea that magic existed. And when he blinked open his eyes a few seconds later and unerringly met hers, she actually felt the magic all around them. She blinked and the feeling passed but for the rest of her life, she would remember that one perfect moment when their eyes met, the world seemed to pause and she knew beyond a doubt that she was right where she was meant to be. For the rest of her life, she'd remember that moment as the beginning of the best part of her life. Her feelings for Booth were so strong in that moment that she felt swept away and the only thing she could do was lean forward and kiss him.

_All my thoughts just seem to settle on the breeze  
When I'm lying wrapped up in your arms  
The whole world just fades away_  
_The only thing I hear  
Is the beating of your heart_

"Morning, beautiful," Booth said when they came up for air a few moments later.

"Morning," she whispered back, nuzzling her face into his neck.

"Beautiful morning," he commented and she nodded absently, much more interested in the skin over his Adam's apple than in talking.

Booth ran his hands up and down her back as she kept exploring his neck. "Temperance," he whispered before tangling his fingers in her hair and bringing her face up for a deep, wet kiss. The kind of kiss that short circuited the brain and made thinking impossible.

Brennan hadn't had many of those; there weren't many things in this world that could short circuit Temperance Brennan's brain and kisses had rarely made that list. In point of fact, sex hadn't always been able to wipe her mind of thought either. While she might not have been thinking of work or mundane things, she had always been rather aware of the moment and thinking of the next step. She'd never been able to relax enough, to trust her partner enough to let go and only feel. When she did concentrate on feelings, it was always on her own. Sex for her had been a somewhat lonely experience as, no matter how physically close she might be to the man, the emotional distance she kept from everyone else prevented her to connect on an intimate level with him. Theoretically, she'd always understood the idea of emotional intimacy; she just never experienced it – not before Booth, at any rate.

When she was with Booth, it was impossible to think of anything but him and them together. Sweets had complained more than once that they had the ability to close ranks and exclude everyone and anything from their reality. Angela had commented on that a couple of times too but Brennan had never given it much thought. Yes, she was always aware of Booth, much more than she was aware of anyone else but she had never quite realized that she was aware of Booth almost to the exclusion of everyone else. When they were together the world seemed to disappear and she'd never noticed because how do you notice something that's not there? Especially when you have all you need right beside you and don't need to look beyond that?

That concentration on just the two of them had always been stronger when they touched; those guy hugs he'd given her when she needed comfort did more than calm her down, they made her forget, if only for a few moments, her problems. And now that they'd made love, that feeling had only grown. They became so wrapped up in each other that the world could end and they wouldn't notice. She was thinking that she had to talk to Booth about this absorption with each other when he flipped over so that she was beneath him. She tried to bring his face back up to continue kissing but he kissed his way down her chest until he could pull her nipple into his mouth and every thought she had in her head flew out the window; the only thing she knew from that moment on were the feelings in her body, the cadence of their breathing and their pounding heartbeats.

_  
'Cause I can feel you breathe  
It's washing over me  
Suddenly I'm melting into you  
There's nothing left to prove  
Baby all we need is just to be_

"Seeley," she gasped when he nipped one nipple before switching to the other one. She shuddered as the pleasure made her feel as if her bones were melting one moment and as if her whole body would snap, because it was so tight, the next. She fisted her right hand in his hair and the left glided down to his neck, shoulders and down his back. On the way back, her nails raked his back lightly, making him moan and he nipped her breast before he continued sucking it.

Brennan moaned as she felt the pull on her nipple all the way down to her feminine core. She restlessly moved, wanting to feel, to touch him all over but unable to as his position over her only allowed her to caress his upper back. Not one to be easily deterred from getting what she wanted, Brennan shifted until her right leg was outside his left one and then rubbed it up and down, placing her foot on his calf and following his calf and then his thigh muscle until she reached his gluteus maxim. She then shifted once more, trying to get her left leg outside his right one and trapping his body between them but Booth shifted with her, stopping the movement.

"Booth," she moaned. "Come on, I need you," she entreated him, undulating beneath him to entice him but he shook his head.

"No way, Bones," he spoke right over her nipple before blowing gently on it; as impossible as she thought it was, his breath made her nipple even harder and little sparks of sensation traveled all the way down to her stomach and to her wet and throbbing center. "We did this the fast and furious way last night, I think it's time for the slow and gentle this morning." And no matter how she moaned, pleaded or panted, he kept it slow and easy.

She realized with a start that, despite her wanting him to hurry, the sense of urgency she'd felt the night before was missing; that sense of desperation, of having to hurry and experience it all before it goes away, of having to prove to themselves that this was real – that they were finally happening was gone. In its place, there was a sense of peace, of calm that came from knowing it _was_ real, that they had years ahead of them to revisit the wild, sweeping, uncontrolled passion of the night before. They could take their time and relish each other, savor finally being together without anything but the feel of each other in their minds.

_  
Caught up in the touch  
The slow and steady rush  
Baby, isn't that the way that love's supposed to be  
I can feel you breathe  
Just breathe_

Still, as nice as the steady and easy pace was, they both knew when the time for exploration was over. He glided over her body; kissing, licking, nipping his way across her torso and breast all the way up to her mouth. He looked into her eyes as he caught her hands in his and laced their fingers together; he brought their linked hands up to rest by their heads before he lowered his head for a deep kiss. Just as their mouth touched, he thrust deeply into her body.

Booth kept a nice, slow and steady rhythm as they shared many unhurried and deep kisses. When they finally had to come up for air, they separated only enough to be able to breathe freely. Their mouths brushed against each other and, as they stared deep into each other's eyes once more, they could feel the other one breathe. Having their eyes locked onto each other as their breaths mingled together, somehow made their connection that much more intimate.

Despite having had many lovers and despite having made love with Booth the night before, Brennan had never quite felt so close to another human being. She'd thought they had broken the laws of physics and 'become one' the night before. But it wasn't until that moment, when Booth's body moved slowly in and out of hers and she was able to see the love he felt for her reflected in his eyes that she realized what making love was all about.

Temperance Brennan was not a woman given to emotional displays but she found herself blinking back tears as the full force of her feelings for Booth swept through her body for perhaps the first time. She opened her mouth to say something but the only thing that came out was a moan and a gasp as Booth lost his rhythm and started thrusting faster. As they rushed towards their climax, every thought but what her body was feeling left her head and the moment passed.

Moments later, still looking into each other's eyes and sharing their breaths, they came together. As wonderful as the night before had been, this was even better. Their first few times had been about resolving the sexual tension that had built up in the last five years and while it had been exhilarating, it had lacked the sheer nuances of emotions that morning love making had. In short, the night before Brennan had discovered that sex with someone you knew, trusted and cared for, sex with someone who was more than just a friend was so much more than she'd ever imagined but that morning she discovered that _making love_ with that person was the only way two people could become one.

_In a way I know my heart is waking up  
As all the walls come tumbling down  
I'm closer than I've ever felt before  
And I know and you know  
There's no need for words right now_

"Wow," Brennan gasped as the last of the tremors shook her body.

"Yeah," Booth agreed. "We broke the laws of physics that time, didn't we?" he asked with a smirk.

"I think we did," she agreed, still gasping for breath and he realized that it wasn't only the affects of her climax but also his weight on top of her that was preventing her from taking in a full breath. With a moan, he forced his still shaking body to move to her side so that only his left arm and leg lay over her torso and his head was buried in her hair against her neck.

"Why didn't we do this before?" he asked, blowing her hair out of his way, too tired to move his hand to do it properly.

"Because of your line," was the prompt answer.

"Oh, yeah, the line," he nodded. "Should have erased that damn line years ago."

"I don't think that would have been a good idea," she shook her head and made Booth look sharply up at her. "I don't think we were ready," she continued. He raised his eyebrow and she smiled ruefully, "Ok, _I_ wasn't ready. I wouldn't have wanted anything but a physical relationship and you would have pushed for emotional intimacy and commitment. I would have shied away from that . . ."

"You mean run away," Booth corrected her. She glared at him for the interruption but nodded in acquiescence in the end.

"I wouldn't have known how to deal with it, how to give you what you wanted and needed," she admitted. "In the end, our partnership, our friendship would have been ruined. It's better that we waited."

"You're right," he agreed, studying her closely.

"You don't have to sound so surprised," she complained. "I'm often right," she added loftily.

"I know," he grinned shortly before saying seriously, "just not usually about stuff like this. Just when did you get so smart about emotional issues?" He asked out loud what he'd been wondering since the night before.

"I had a very good teacher," she answered, shrugging her shoulders and giving him a coy look. He chuckled before leaning down to kiss her.

"Hmmm," he moaned as he ended the kiss and once again snuggled against her neck. He tightened the leg and arm he had around her and pulling her even closer to his body, content to stay right where he was for the rest of the morning.

She grinned when she realized he was hugging her as a child would a teddy bear. She rubbed his shoulder gently back and forth as she thought of what could have happened if 'the damn line' hadn't been there. Some might say that they would have just found each other that much sooner but she knew herself well enough to be sure that what she'd just told him was right.

Her barriers had been too high and strong, constructed over too many years and too many disappointments to have fallen easily. It had taken Angela and, especially, Booth years of constantly being there, of silently reassuring her they wouldn't leave before she started lowering her defenses. She still wasn't sure just how Booth had gotten through them; she'd certainly had no intention of ever letting him in, much less letting him get in as much as he'd gotten. But before she'd known it, there he was and she hadn't known how to get him out and later, she hadn't wanted to let him get out.

He'd, somehow, laid waste to all the walls she started building at 15, when her parents and brother left her. She had been determined to never need anyone, never depend on anyone but he hadn't paid attention to her defenses; had instead demanded that she pay attention to him and she'd been unable to resist. Now, the heart she'd sworn was all but buried and was nothing more than an organ that pumped blood through her body had woken up and she could do nothing else but follow its dictates. What was surprising, though, was that she didn't mind. She liked knowing that there was someone that cared enough to push through her defenses, that there was someone that knew her enough to see past her need to retreat. And she really, really liked that that someone was Booth; she'd always been oddly comforted by him, even when she thought he was annoying, there was something about him that called to her. Those 'guy hugs' of his had seen her through some of the worst moments of her life.

And now, they were in completely uncharted waters and she wasn't afraid because he was right beside her. This new phase of their relationship felt completely natural – it just felt right. It was as if they'd been steadily making their way to this particular destination all these years; Angela would probably say that it's been a long time coming. And maybe she'd be right but Brennan knew that this change was right because this was the right time. Everything they've gone through had brought them to this place and she didn't regret a single thing or a single day because she absolutely loved this new place they found themselves in. They might have risked everything had they acted before and she couldn't have stood it if they not only lost their chance at this new intimacy but also destroyed their friendship. He'd broken through all her barriers and she now needed him there more than ever.

With a slow smile, she ran her fingers through his hair and down his back as she closed her eyes and allowed herself to drift. For once, she didn't feel the need to get up and go to the lab to examine some body from limbo or to work on her new novel; she was quite happy to stay right where she was and enjoy the moment. Without asking, she knew Booth felt the same. They had always had an uncanny ability to communicate without speaking; often, a look, a touch or a couple of words was enough to convey entire conversations. This new aspect to their relationship had only seemed to increase that ability. And she found herself rejoicing in that fact as much as in the feel of having him all around her.

Some time later, (could have been a few minutes or a few hours cause who could really tell how much time passed when the person you love was wrapped around you?) she stirred and asked, "What time is it?" She made as if to pick up her head and look but in the end, left him to it.

"Ah, almost 11:30," he said, after lifting his head just enough to make out the clock on the bedside table.

"Eleven thirty?!" She asked, moving as if to sit up. He tightened his hold, however, and kept her pinned more or less under him.

"Yup," he shrugged, not really concerned about the time. It was Saturday, after all; what did they have to do?

"But I could have sworn it was just after 9 when I woke up!" she protested, unable to understand how she'd lasted in bed for so long. She was usually up way before 10 o'clock even came around.

"Yeah, well," he couldn't help smirking, "that was quite a while ago, Bones. We were kinda busy for a bit, remember?"

"Yes, but . . ." he had taken his time, hadn't he? "Well, regardless, we have to get up now."

"Why?" he asked, ignoring her attempts to push him off of her – actually, more like resisting her attempts to push him off of her.

"Because," she answered, sounding exasperated but knowing that if she didn't give him a good reason, he'd make her stay in bed just to prove a point. And the fact that she recognized that he could _make_ her do anything, should really have surprised and annoyed her a lot more than it did. "We need to take a shower and get some food." When he still didn't move, she added, "Isn't Rebecca bringing Parker by in less than two hours?"

"Shit!" he muttered as he sprung away from her as if he'd been burned. "Yes, she is," he confirmed, wondering how on Earth he could have forgotten his son was coming by.

"And you have that phone call to make before he gets here," she continued, finally sitting up and running her fingers through her hair to get it out of her face.

"Phone call?" he asked, distractedly as he got up from the bed.

"Yes," she nodded. "You have to call the woman," the hesitation was small, but Booth heard it and couldn't help the smile that came to his lips, "you went out with last night." He nodded absently until he realized what she'd said. Shoot, Katie - someone else he'd completely forgotten. Unfortunately, remembering her didn't bring the same pleasure remembering Parker brought.

"Yeah," he mumbled, rubbing his hand over his neck. "I gotta do that." He didn't sound the least enthusiastic about it.

"If you don't want to do it, I'll do it," she offered.

"Yeah, right," he scoffed. "There's no way you're calling her."

"I don't mind, really," she reassured him, giving him a wide smile that he eyed very dubiously.

"I'm sure you wouldn't," he finally granted. "But it ain't happening; bad enough that I'm dumping her, I'm not doing it by proxy."

"If you don't want to stop seeing her," she began, looking up at him intently and lightly fisting her hands.

"What?" he asked, turning to look at her and noticing the lines around her eyes and mouth that hadn't been there five minutes ago; anyone else wouldn't have noticed them, they were masked so easily, but he wasn't anyone else. "No, that's not what I meant at all. Of course, I don't want to see her again. I just meant that breaking up with anyone is not easy or pleasant and having someone break up with you is even less pleasant – hearing it from the person responsible for the break up, well . . ." he shrugged and looked at her and she had to nod; that wouldn't be nice at all. "Besides, I'm not the kind of man that runs out on his responsibilities; it's my job to talk to her and I'll do it. I just wish it wasn't necessary."

"You just said you didn't want to keep seeing her," she pointed out, looking confused and insecure again and he wondered how long it would take for her to be secure in his feelings for her even as he marveled at the fact that she could be insecure about them in the first place. Hadn't he proved over and over again that he'd do anything to stop her from being hurt?

"I don't," he insisted. "I just wish none of this was necessary; I just . . . I wish I hadn't gone out with her in the first place." He ran his hands through his hair, leaving it all mussed and disheveled as he looked off to the side with a disgusted expression that she had the distinct impression was directed at himself.

"Why did you?" she couldn't resist asking. It was something she'd wondered about ever since Angela had first mentioned the dates. But it hadn't been something she would have brought up herself since, whatever she'd said to the contrary, she'd really had no say in how he conducted his love life; not when she herself had been on more than one date and relationship in the last five years. If she wasn't mistaken there was a saying about glass houses and rocks and she was pretty sure she was in no position to be throwing them.

"I'm not sure," he started to answer but when he saw the absorbed look on her face, the one she got when she was giving her complete attention to something and he realized just how much she trusted him to guide her in these relationship waters, he knew he couldn't be anything less that completely truthful with her. "I guess, I liked the fact that this gorgeous woman was paying attention to me, that she wanted to get to know me as a woman knows a man," he shrugged. "I guess my ego needed the boost and . . . well, I guess I was losing hope that _you'd_ ever see me that way – like a man you might want and not just your trusted partner." He paused for a minute to see how she was taking it but she was just staring at him with a deer caught in headlights look.

"I thought maybe it was time to move on," he continued. "But I only ended up making a mess of things. Now, I'm going to hurt a pretty terrific woman and I almost missed the chance to have what I've wanted for the last five years – finally be with the love of my life."

"I'm sorry," she told him quietly, catching hold of his hand.

"There's nothing for you to be sorry about," he said, shrugging again. "Everything worked out in the end and it's not your fault that I became impatient."

"But if I just had . . ." he put his finger over her lips to stop her.

"No, Bones, you didn't do anything wrong," he said, shaking his head. "It was all me."

"But you didn't do anything wrong, either," she protested. Then a thought occurred to her. "Do you feel like you cheated on her?"

"No," he shook his head. "We've only been on three dates; we hadn't said anything about being exclusive. It wasn't that serious – thought it could have been," he added, determined to be completely above-board. She flinched at that, realizing how close she'd come to losing the chance to embark on this new stage of their relationship with him.

"Did you . . .?" she started to ask but shook her head before finishing the thought. "It's none of my business; forget I said anything." She grimaced lightly and turned her head, not really wanting to know if he had.

"Did I sleep with her?" he finished the thought for her, smiling gently as he brought her eyes back to his. "No," he answered his own question. Just as he'd noticed how tense she'd become a few moments ago, he also noticed her quiet sigh of relief. "It didn't even get to that point. She invited me to her place last night but I couldn't go. I . . . I guess, if anything, I felt like I was cheating on _you_."

"Booth," she said, shaking her head again and cupping his cheek. "We didn't have that kind of relationship so you couldn't have been cheating on me; you know that. Just as I know that you're not the kind of man to cheat on anyone. I . . . I won't deny that I appreciate that you felt like that and that I'm really glad you didn't sleep with her but . . . even if you had, I wouldn't hold it against you because you owed me nothing. You had every right to live your life like you wanted and spend your time with whoever you wanted. We've both had romantic liaisons with other people in the last five years and there was nothing wrong with that – even if the other one didn't like it." She paused for a minute and was glad that he'd relaxed. "But what's done is done; now, we look to the future. Having said that, what I said last night stands. You're mine, you even look at another woman now and I'll . . ."

"You'll kill me?" he asked, grinning and feeling much better with the whole situation. He would always feel a certain amount of guilt for having gone out with Katie but Bones had just put most of that to rest.

"No," she shook her head and looked entirely too serious, "I'll kill her if she looks back; you, I'd make your life miserable. Killing you would be too easy."

"Glad to hear it," he laughed and leaned forward to kiss her. "And just so you know, same goes," he added as he pulled back and made her laugh out loud. "Now, come on; let's take a shower and then get something to eat." Since her stomach chose that moment to rumble, she followed him without a word of complaint.

A little more than forty minutes later, Brennan was fixing a late brunch while Booth finished getting ready.

"What time is Parker getting here?" she asked, speaking loudly so he'd hear her all the way in the bedroom.

"Around one, Becca said," he answered as he walked into the kitchen. "Parks had a dentist appointment at 11:30 and she would bring him by afterwards."

"His appointments take an hour an a half?" she asked, raising an eyebrow in surprise.

"You kidding? At the dentist, that's a conservative estimate. Especially since it's Saturday and every parent that can't make it during the week is there," he explained. She nodded and went back to cooking.

"So," she said casually. "When are you making that phone call?"

"I was thinking," he said, putting down the glass of milk he'd been drinking. "Breaking up is not really something you should do over the phone. Would you mind very much if I take her for a cup of coffee later on and tell her then?"

She looked up at him, surprised and almost asked what was wrong with breaking up over the phone – she'd done it and had had it done to her. But looking into his eyes, she realized that just because other men did it like that, didn't mean it was right or particularly nice. And it wasn't something Booth would feel right doing. So, she swallowed her protest and nodded instead. "Sure, if you think that's best," she told him. She trusted him and had no problem with the idea of him seeing that woman again; now that they'd established the new rules of their relationship.

"Thanks, Bones," he said as he leaned forward to lightly kiss her lips before picking up his cell phone and walking a few feet away before making the call.

"Katie? Hi, it's Booth," he said a few moments later and though she kept her attention on the omelets she was making, she also kept half an ear on the conversation he was having. She trusted him with her life and future but that was no reason not to listen when he was talking within earshot.

"I'm glad," he was saying, rubbing his neck and looking down at the floor, frowning and clearly uncomfortable. "Yes, I had a nice time too. . . That's why I was calling, actually. Yeah, I've heard of it but I don't think . . . No, it's not that . . . it's just that, well . . . I think you're a wonderful person too but . . . Yes," he nodded, closing his eyes and breathing deeply. "Yes, there is someone else. No," he denied firmly. "I wasn't . . . we weren't. . . yes, my partner at work. She came by late last night and we had a talk. . . I hadn't realized I was so transparent," he said, chuckling but it sounded slightly forced. "It was complicated . . . no, not really. I guess we realized it was worth it despite all the complications. I'm sorry, Katie. I never meant to . . . Yeah, I guess these things do happen . . . yes, it is for the best . . . I just never meant to hurt you, really. . . I'm glad. Yes, it was great knowing you. . . What? Well, ok," he chuckled again, but this time it was a much more amused sound. "I'll make sure to send you one. And Katie, thank you for . . . Ok, well, talk to you later, then. . . Take care . . . you too, bye." He hung up and looked back at Brennan, who had stopped pretending to cook and was looking at him.

"Apparently," he said, making a face that was between a grin and a grimace, "you're not the only one that thinks I belong to you."

_  
'Cause I can feel you breathe  
It's washing over me  
Suddenly I'm melting into you_

_There's nothing left to prove  
Baby all we need is just to be  
Caught up in the touch  
The slow and steady rush  
Baby, isn't that the way that love's supposed to be  
I can feel you breathe  
Just breathe_

_I can feel the magic floating in the air  
Being with you gets me that way_

**A/N2: **What did you think? I added the last part because more than one of you asked about the conversation with Katie. I really had not thought about it at all. I have no idea who Katie is - besides being a plot device. I say she's a great person because I don't think Booth would go out with anyone that wasn't, let alone seriously consider letting go of Brennan for anyone short of amazing but I really had no notion beyond that so I couldn't really visualize what that scene would be like. But some many of you asked for it that I ended up intrigued myself and this is what musie came up with. I hope you liked it. And for those that want to see Parker, he's coming! As is Angela! Really, the reason this ended up being 5 chapters was because all of your reviews and requests inspired me to keep coming up with things to add!!!!


	4. Knowing

**Nick of Time**

**Disclaimer: **Nope, they're still not mine

**A/N: **Well, here's the next chapter. I'm sorry for the long wait but you know how it gets sometimes. Good news is, last chapter is done. I just need my beta to go through it and I can post. I want to thank everyone that review and apologize for not answering. I want you guys to know how much I appreciate each and everyone of your reviews but I haven't really had the time to reply. I'll try to get to them right now. Well, I hope you like this chapter. As always thanks to Pup for all her help; I have to thank Kerrie for her inspiration. I'm sure there are more of you out there that wanted Brennan to say 'I love you' and didn't agree with my not having her say it. I stand by my decision; for some reason, that's how musie wanted it to be but you guys I always take your points seriously, so, I try to explain why I wrote it that way later in the chapter. I hope it makes sense. Please let me know what you think!!!

**Chapter 4: Knowing**

"Dinner will be done in about half an hour," Brennan announced as she came out of Booth's kitchen and sat down on the sofa, where both Booth boys where playing some sort of game on the television.

"Cool," Booth nodded, not taking his eyes off the TV.

"What are we having, Dr. Bones?" Parker asked, not really taking his attention from the game either.

"Macaroni and Cheese," Brennan answered, looking from them to the TV and trying to understand the game that had them so enthralled.

"It's Bones' secret recipe," Booth told his son. "Very, very good, you'll like it."

"Cool cause I'm hungry," Parker said.

"It won't be long now," Brennan assured him. She observed them playing for a few moments before shaking her head and smiling ruefully; Booth was as involved in the game as Parker was. He was such a big child and while she enjoyed watching him have fun, there was something they had to do. "Booth," she called out and gave him a look when he turned his head to look at her.

"Alright," he whispered and nodded before taking a deep breath; he knew he had to have a talk with Parker but he'd been putting it off all day because he didn't know how to start. "You had a good time today, didn't you buddy?"

"Yeah, I had a great time!" Parker agreed, nodding enthusiastically. Taking advantage of the warm weather, they'd taken Parker to the park where he and Booth ran and passed a football for a few hours then they went to the diner, since all the physical activity had made both guys hungry – their breakfast a distant memory. Afterwards, Brennan had proposed they go to the museum, saying all physical activity should be balanced out with something educational. Booth had protested but since Parker had been excited about it, he agreed; though, of course, he complained most of the time there that she was turning his son into a squint. When they finally made it back to Booth's apartment, Brennan started dinner while Booth gave Parker his bath and then sat with him in the living room to play on the Play-station.

"And you like Bones, right?" Booth asked. "You like spending time with her?"

"Yup," Parker nodded again. "She's loads of fun. Can we do it again tomorrow?" Booth and Brennan shared a look before Booth answered his son.

"Well, see buddy, we kinda have plans for tomorrow," Booth said. Brennan had talked with a realtor earlier in the day and had made a tentative appointment for the following day. "We want to go house hunting and we're kinda hoping you want to go with us."

"House hunting?" Parker asked, finally looking up from the game to frown at his father in confusion. Seeing that he finally got Parker's full attention, he paused the game and turned to fully face him.

"Yeah, we're going to look for a new house," Booth explained.

"A new house?" Parker asked.

"Yup, a bigger house so that we can all fit," Booth told him. "You, me . . . and Bones."

"Dr. Bones is going to move in with us?" Parker asked, looking from Brennan to Booth.

"Yes," Booth nodded.

"Okay," Parker agreed and motioned to go back to the game but Booth, after sharing a look with Brennan, prevented him by asking, "That's it? You don't have any questions or comments."

"No," Parker shook his head before he frowned a little. "Wait, I'll have my own room, right?"

"Of course," Brennan answered.

"And this is a real house? With a yard and everything?" Parker wanted to know. Brennan nodded and Parker's eye's suddenly gleamed.

"Can we have swings?" the eight-year old asked, apparently knowing when he should press his luck.

"I don't see why not," Brennan answered with a shrug, ignoring Booth's warning look.

"Will it have a basement?" Parker asked then. "Cause Jamie's house has a basement and he has all sorts of games and stuff down there. Oh, and can we have a pool?" he went on, now really excited as he thought of everything he could have in a new house.

"We'll have to see what's available tomorrow," Brennan answered, grinning at how well Parker seemed to be taking it all; she'd been worried that he would have a problem with it. "But I don't see why not," she continued, shrugging.

"We have to see what's in our price range," Booth put in firmly, reigning in both of them. He and Brennan had already had a . . . discussion about what how much to spend and who was going to contribute what. They hadn't really come to an agreement yet.

"But I can go with you when you're looking at them?" Parker wanted to be sure.

"Yes, you can," Booth nodded. "We'll all go tomorrow."

"Good," Parker nodded once and that seemed to be that; he turned back to the game. But Booth once again prevented it.

"That's it?" Booth asked again. "You don't have any other questions or concerns?" He shared another look with Brennan and added, "About Bones moving in with us, I mean."

"Nope," Parker shook his head. "I don't."

"So, you're okay with this?" Brennan asked needing to be sure that Parker didn't have a problem with her living with them.

"You're okay with Bones living with us?" Booth asked, as much as he loved Brennan and wanted to live with her, he had to know that Parker was okay with it.

"Sure," Parker nodded immediately. "Why wouldn't I? I love Dr. Bones; she's a lot of fun to be around."

"You love me?" Brennan asked, surprised. She shot a look at Booth, who was grinning at her and had an 'I told you so' look on his face.

"Course I do," Parker answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "You're super smart and always know the answers to my questions and never give me that funny look daddy sometimes gives me," Brennan shot a look at Booth but he just shrugged and grinned. "And you're funny; you always make me laugh. And you're pretty," Booth couldn't help but feel proud that that was Parker's third reason; it meant Booth was doing something good. "And you make daddy happy," Parker continued in a matter of fact way that made the words have more of an impact. "He smiles more when you're around. And you love my daddy and me, right Dr. Bones?"

"Of course I do, Parker," Brennan told him, smiling gently and blinking back tears; his explanation of why he loved her had touched her deeply. Parker nodded as if he'd known the answer all along.

"I think it's going to be fun living with you, Dr. Bones," he declared with a grin but then he stopped as a thought obviously occurred to him. "Does this mean you guys are getting married?"

"Yes, it does," Booth answered, once again sharing a telling look with Brennan. "You're okay with that too, right?"

"Sure," Parker nodded. "I can be your best man, can't I, Daddy?" He asked, looking at Booth with entreaty; he'd gone to a wedding of a cousin of his mom's and had been fascinated by the whole ceremony.

"Of course you can, buddy," Booth answered, grinning. "I can't think of anyone else I would rather have next to me that day." They smiled and nodded at each other and apparently that was that – the matter was settled as far as they were concerned.

"But," Brennan couldn't help intervening; Booth might be convinced but she wasn't just yet. "But don't you think this is all rather sudden, Parker?" As happy and at peace as she was with all the decisions and changes, she still wasn't quite adjusted to all of them but Parker seemed to be taking them all in stride without a problem.

"Sudden?" he asked, frowning up at Brennan.

"It means from one moment to the next without notice," she started to explain but he cut her off.

"I know what it means, Dr. Bones," he told her, rolling his eyes just like his father. "I just don't think its sudden cause you have been daddy's girlfriend for years. I think you have taken a long time already."

"I've been your dad's girlfriend for years?" she asked, looking at Booth for help but he looked as confused as she did.

"Park, buddy," Booth said, "why do you think Bones has been my girlfriend for years? Did someone tell you that?"

"No," Parker shook his head. "I asked mommy once but she muttered a lot about you being too chicken poop or something and never really answered. But I know she's your girlfriend cause of how you act around each other. You're always together or you're always on the phone; you always know where the other is and you're always touching each other. You fight a lot," he added, thoughtfully, "but it's more like you're playing 'cause you end up laughing most of the time. And you're always looking at each other with goofy eyes."

"Goofy eyes?" Booth asked fascinated at this insight into how his eight year old thought.

"Yes, you know: goofy eyes," Parker said, scrunching up his face and attempting to look love struck. "Like Jamie's mom gives his dad right before they start kissing," he added with a distasteful frown. "I've never seen you guy kiss," and he sounded right down grateful at that. "That's why I asked mom if Dr. Bones was your girlfriend – cause all the other boyfriends and girlfriends I've seen kiss but mom didn't really answer me. But then I talked it over with the guys and we think you're just like Aaron's mom and dad who never kiss when any one else is around but they sure do make a lot of goofy eyes at each other. Plus," he added when neither Booth nor Brennan could think of anything to say, "you love Dr. Bones and she loves you," he shrugged, "and when two people love each other, they're girlfriend and boyfriend, right?" He asked them and they looked at each other, not really knowing what to say.

"Well," Booth finally said, "it's a bit more complicated than that, Parks. But yes, essentially you're right." Parker nodded as if that had never been in doubt.

"So, you're girlfriend and boyfriend, right?" he pressed and they both nodded. Neither thinking there was anything to gain in trying to explain to an eight year old why they had taken so long to decide what to him was more than obvious.

"He has quite the career as an FBI agent ahead of him, doesn't he?" Brennan asked, still in shock. She didn't quite know what it said about her that a child had figured out what was between her and her partner apparently years before she'd finally gotten it.

"Yes, he does," Booth proudly nodded and Parker preened at the compliment. He then turned to Brennan.

"Dr. Bones," he said with a smile just like his father's when he was trying to get something from her, "is dinner going to be done soon? Cause I'm really hungry," he added, proving that he was indeed a Booth – thinking of his stomach no matter what else was going on around him.

"Dinner should be done in a few minutes," Brennan assured him. "Why don't you and your daddy set the table while I check on it?" She asked as she got up.

"Okay," he agreed and jumped from the sofa and rushed towards the kitchen, calling to his dad to hurry cause the sooner they got the table set the sooner they could eat. A few seconds later, however, he came running back to Brennan.

"Dr. Bones?" he asked her.

"Yes, Parker," she said, smiling down and ruffling his curls.

"You staying the night, right?"

"Ah, well, yes, I am," she finally confirmed. She wasn't sure if that was the right thing to say but since they'd already told him that they were girlfriend and boyfriend, she didn't think it would matter too much. Besides, Brennan firmly believed in being honest with children.

"Could you tuck me in tonight?" he asked him, looking up at her from eyes identical to what he had referred to as his father's goofy eyes – making Brennan realize that he was going to be just as a much a heartbreaker as his father. "And read me a story? I bet you read even better than Daddy?" Brennan was stunned and looked up to see what Booth thought of the request, thinking maybe he would be feel displaced. But Booth was leaning against the entryway to the kitchen, smiling and looking pretty darn pleased with the world in general. When he winked at her and nodded, she smiled and turned back to Parker.

"I'd love to, Parker," she told him and he grinned and threw his arms around her waist.

"I love you, Dr. Bones," he said again before running back to his father and the task of setting the table. After all, there was dinner to be had.

----

"Bren," Angela called as she followed Brennan into her office.

"Hey, Angela," Brennan said, dropping her bag on her desk before taking off her light coat and hanging it. "How was your weekend?" she asked as she sat down behind her desk.

"It was fine," Angela said, waving that away, more interested in Brennan and her weekend. "What's going on? How come you're late this morning?"

"Nothing's going on," Brennan answered as she turned on her computer. "And it's barely nine o'clock, Angela. I'm not late."

"If you were anyone else, you wouldn't be late," Angela corrected. "But you're Temperance Brennan and you're rarely here after 7 in the morning, so you're two hours late. Did something happen?"

"No," Brennan shook her head. "I'm just running a bit late this morning I guess."

"How come you didn't answer your phone all weekend?" Angela continued to press as she leaned on the couch's armrest and crossed her arms over her chest. "I called you repeatedly Saturday and Sunday and you never answered."

"I spent the weekend with Booth and Parker," Brennan explained. "I really wasn't at my apartment that much." More like at all, she privately reflected, if you didn't count the less than half an hour Saturday afternoon when she picked up a few things.

"But why didn't you answer your cell phone?" Angela was so upset about it that she failed to question that particular piece of information.

"The battery ran out," Brennan confessed with a shrug.

"The battery ran out?" Angela asked, incredulously. "And you didn't recharge it?" Now Angela knew something was going on; Brennan would never be incommunicado if she could help it – the battery ran out seemed like a very flimsy excuse.

"I thought I had," Brennan shrugged again, seemingly more interested in checking her emails than in the conversation. The truth was that she'd forgotten to pick up her charger Saturday afternoon and since she and Booth had different phones, his charger hadn't worked. By the time she'd realized that her phone had died, it was Sunday afternoon and she'd decided to wait until after they dropped off Parker at his mom's before going back to her place to pick it up.

"You thought you had?" Angela was feeling a bit like a parrot, repeating everything Brennan said but she was so surprised she couldn't think of what else to say. "Brennan you've been out of touch practically all weekend! That's not like you; what if a case had come up?"

"The FBI would call Booth first if a case had come up," Brennan said calmly. "And since I was with him, I'd have known about it as soon as he did."

"What if _I'd_ needed to get in touch with you?" Angela asked then, still confused and upset by the whole thing. "What if something had happened with one of us or your family and we'd needed to get in touch with you but couldn't because you weren't answering either of your phones!"

"If something had happened and you needed me and couldn't get in touch with me," Brennan said slowly, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, "you'd have called Booth right away and asked him if he knew where I was. And since I was with him . . ." she shrugged and trailed off, not needing to complete the sentence. Angela was quiet for a while because what Brennan had said was true; whenever she had a question about where Brennan was, the first thing she did was call Booth. She hadn't called him this weekend because . . . well, she wasn't sure why she hadn't called him. Probably because there had been no emergency and she'd figure there was no reason to alarm him too.

"Wait a minute," Angela said, suddenly registering what Brennan had been saying about how she'd spent her weekend. "You spent the weekend with Booth and Parker? You spent _all_ weekend with them?"

"Yes," Brennan nodded. "We took Parker to the park and then the museum Saturday and we went house hunting yesterday." Angela had started to smile as she heard Brennan say 'we took Parker' and then described a normal family outing but she ended up frowning at the 'house hunting' part.

"You went house hunting?" she asked, puzzled. "I thought you loved your place?"

"I do," Brennan agreed.

"Booth's lease can't possibly be up already?" Angela asked, titling her head as she thought about it. "It hasn't been a year since he asked for help moving, has it?"

"No," Brennan shook his head. "It's only been ten months."

"Well, then, why were you looking at houses?" Angela asked. "Who's moving?"

"We are," Brennan said simply and looked up at the artist to see how she took the news.

"We who?" Angela started to ask and then stopped; her mouth opened and closed a few times as if it finally dawned on her what Brennan meant. "Wait a minute; you don't mean 'we' as in you and Booth, do you?"

"Yes, I do," Brennan answered, nodding.

"So, what you're telling me is that you and Booth are buying a house together?" she asked.

"Yes," Brennan nodded.

"And you're both going to move in? I mean, you're going to _move in_ together as in you're going to live together as in a couple that lives together?" Nope, repeating it didn't make it make any more sense.

"Yes, yes and yes," Brennan answered, smirking at Angela's reaction.

"I must be missing something here," Angela stated; glad that she'd been sitting down when Brennan dropped her little bombshell. "Last I knew, Booth was on a date and you were adamantly refusing that you were in love with him and that was this last Friday, right? Three days ago?"

"Yep, that sounds about right," Brennan answered, sounding down right cheerful; she couldn't deny that she was enjoying Angela's consternation. After all the times the artist had teased Brennan about Booth, it felt good to get a little payback.

"So, what am I missing?" Angela insisted. "Come on, Bren, you have to tell me what happened!"

"I just did what you told me to do," Brennan answered. "I thought about every point you made, I came to some conclusions and then I went to see Booth to tell him about them."

"So, what were the decisions?" Angela impatiently asked, waving her hands to indicate Brennan should hurry. "Did you finally acknowledge that you're in love with him? Did you tell him you love him? What did he say? I bet he was over the moon and told you he loved you too, right?"

"Not exactly," Brennan told her.

"Not exactly? What do you mean 'not exactly'?" Angela questioned, "I thought you just told me you guys are moving in together? Doesn't that mean you're now a couple?"

"Yes, we are," Brennan confirmed.

"Then what do you mean . . ." Angela started to repeat her last question when something in Brennan's expression made her trail off. "Wait, don't tell me; you didn't tell him you love him, did you?"

"No, I didn't," Brennan admitted.

"Why on Earth not?" Angela demanded, throwing her hands up in exasperation.

"Because I don't know if I am in love with him," Brennan said simply, her voice not betraying the irritation she was beginning to feel. The conversation was no longer as enjoyable as it was a few moments ago.

"How can you not know it?" Angela wanted to know. "And how could you guys decide to be a couple if you don't?"

"I stopped thinking in terms of love when I was fifteen," Brennan told Angela, repeating what she had said to Booth Friday night. "How can I tell Booth I love him when I don't really know what that means? What I _do_ know is that I want him in my life – that I need him in my life; that I want to have more than just a friendship or professional partnership with him and that I want the change to be permanent. I also know that he's mine and that I won't let anyone else have him. So, I went and talked to Booth about it and we agreed that it was time to move our relationship forward."

"And then you just decided to move in together?" Angela asked, aghast. She was shaking her head in disbelief at what she was hearing.

"Yes," Brennan nodded.

"And Booth just accepted this?" Angela asked, frowning. "He didn't see a problem with it?" She couldn't believe Booth would be so much an idiot to agree with this.

"Yes, he did," Brennan answered, frowning herself. "And no, he didn't. Why would he?" Her irritation was starting to seep into her voice.

"Because Booth is head over heels in love with you," Angela retorted. "Sometimes I think he's stupidly in love with you," she added, almost under her breath and once again shaking her head in disbelief. "I'm sure he told you he loved you," it was said as a statement but it had a hint of a question in it and Angela stared at Brennan until the Forensic Anthropologist gave a tight nod in assent. "It couldn't have felt too good when you didn't say it back."

"He understood," Brennan shrugged, not liking or understanding why Angela kept pushing this point.

"Maybe," Angela granted. "But that's not the point."

"Then what is the point, Angela?" Brennan asked, sounding exasperated. "Honestly, I thought you'd be happy for us."

"I am!" Angela proclaimed.

"Then why are you going on about this?" Brennan asked again.

"Because you guys have waited so long for this that I don't want to see you mess it up," Angela said, sincerely but sounding more than a little frustrated. "I don't want to see you start something that won't work out and that will mess up one of the most important relationships of your life."

"Why are you so sure it won't work out?" Brennan inquired, not sure whether she should be angry or flattered that her friend worried so much about her.

"Because how can a relationship that begins on such uneven ground survive?" Angela said, answering a question with another. "How can you guys make it work when from the beginning he's willing to put more into it than you? Sooner or later, one of you will end up resenting the other."

"What makes you think that he's willing to do or put more into this relationship than me?" Brennan asked, now sounding really irritated at the implication.

"Bren," Angela said quietly, "he's told you he loves you and all you've told him is what? That he's yours and that you don't want anyone else to have him? How is that fair?" Angela asked, sounding genuinely worried.

"Booth knows how I feel about him," Brennan insisted. "He knows it wasn't easy for me to go see him and start this conversation. He knows I made a lot of compromises to get to this point. How can you just dismiss that? You _know_ me; you know I didn't make this decision lightly."

"I know, Bren," Angela said, sighing softly. "I know. And I'm not saying you don't have strong feelings for him; hell, I still contend that you're in love with him. I just . . ." she shook her head and blew out a hard breath, frustrated. "Whether he knows or not what you feel for him, you haven't said it. You haven't told him and he's told you. Sometimes, sweetie, you need to say and hear the words. They need to be said so that there won't be any misunderstandings; so that both parties know exactly what they're getting and that they're getting it for the right reasons. And not wanting anyone else to have him is not enough to base a whole life on," Angela pointed out. "I'm sorry but it's not. But more than that," she continued, when Brennan opened her mouth to protest. "Sometimes we need to hear the words because hearing it lets us know how much we mean to the person saying them. We need to hear them to _know_ we're loved."

"But saying the words is easy, Angela," Brennan protested. "Any one can say them; in fact, most people say them on a regular basis and then they go on and betray the person they said them to. What's important is not the words but the feelings behind them – how the person acts towards you. Actions let us know how much we mean to someone. Words are cheap; after all, don't actions speak louder than words?"

"Maybe," Angela acknowledged. "But words are important and you know that. If you didn't know that, if you didn't believe that, you wouldn't be a best selling author. You wouldn't take such delight in using ten-cent words and twice as many as you really need when explaining something; you wouldn't enjoy flustering Booth by using blunt words that you know make him uncomfortable. And you wouldn't engage him in so many arguments if you didn't get something more than an intellectual challenge. Words _are_ important, Bren, you _know_ that." She finished, repeating what she'd said in the beginning to make sure to drive her point home.

"Yes, they're important," she agreed, not bothering to dispute any of the points Angela had made since they were all true. "But you know me, Angela. You know I don't like to jump to conclusions; I don't give a final finding until all the evidence has been collected and properly analyzed. Do you really think I can tell him I'm in love with him when I don't _know_ what that means?" She asked again. "I have no frame of reference to even begin to form a valid hypothesis about what being in love is like. How then can I make such a statement? How can I look him in the eye and tell him I love him when I'm not even sure I believe that kind of love exists? And what difference does calling what I feel for him 'love' make in the end, anyway? 'What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet'" she quoted before continuing.

"Calling what I feel for him 'love' won't make it any stronger or any more real. Saying 'I love you' won't automatically make our relationship immune to problems and pain. From what I've seen, saying it is _not_ a panacea. So, why would I do it? Saying it when I'm not a hundred percent sure of it would only take away from it; would cheapen my feelings. No, I won't say it; not if the only reason I'm doing it is to satisfy some romantic notions that I had no say in creating. I'm sorry if my not saying it offends you in some way but I refuse to say it just so you can feel more at ease." She paused and looked down at her hands for a moment before looking back up. She looked Angela dead in the eye as she continued, "I appreciate your concern for us, Angela, but in the end this relationship is Booth's and mine. It's for us to decide how to conduct it and I only need to explain or justify my actions to him – not to you. And the funny thing is he hasn't asked for any justification because he knows what I feel for him. He knows that I can no longer imagine my life without him in it, that when I look into the future the only constant in it is him. He knows I can get through anything as long as he's next to me and that I want to build a life with him. He _knows_ what he means to me Angela because I've explained it to him and because he knows me. And he's happy with it, so why can't you be?"

"Oh, sweetie," Angela said, sighing and shaking her head, "you are in love with him. What you just described is a woman in love."

"But don't you see, Angela" Brennan asked, tilting her head. "_You_ are the one making that determination; you're using your own definition of love to arrive at that conclusion. I haven't arrived there because I have no working definition of love that I find valid and I'm not capable of making that determination. And as you said Friday, some conclusions we need to make for ourselves or they lose all meaning – and this is one of them. And I just can't make it, not yet."

Angela studied Brennan as she thought of what the other woman had said. She was right, Angela realized, saying 'I love you' should only be done when one was completely convinced of it and not because of others expectations. And given Brennan's past, it wasn't surprising that she would have difficulty with it; what was surprising was the fact that she'd come as far as recognizing that she wanted to build a life with Booth. And really, at the end of the day wasn't that what saying 'I love you' meant? That you wanted to build a life with that person? Besides, Brennan had also been right in that it was Booth's and Brennan's relationship and Angela had no say in it; if Booth was happy with how things were between them, who was Angela to second guess them?

"You're right," she finally told Brennan. "Saying 'I love you' shouldn't be easy and it shouldn't be said lightly; in fact, it should probably be, if not the hardest, then certainly the most truthful thing we ever say. You shouldn't say it until and unless you're completely sure of what you are saying." She paused for a moment before letting a smile grow as she stood up and walked towards Brennan. "I know you love each other and I know how stubborn you both are, so I'm sure you'll make it. Now, come here and let me congratulate you properly," she demanded, waving Brennan over so that they could hug. "I'm really, really happy for you guys," she told Brennan after they pulled apart. "And I'm sorry if I made you feel I wasn't; I just wanted to . . ."

"It's okay, Angela," Brennan interrupted her. "I know you were just worried about us. But you don't have to be, really. We'll be fine."

"I know you will be," Angela nodded before finally letting out the laugh she'd been holding. "Oh, I can't believe this!" she exclaimed, clapping her hands. "You guys finally saw the light!!! And you're moving in together! Did you find anything good yesterday?"

"We saw a couple of places that had potential," Brennan told her as they moved to sit down on the couch. "But they were a little on the high range and Booth is having some trouble accepting the fact that I am more than capable and happy to pay more than half."

"Well, of course he is," Angela nodded knowingly. "He's a traditionalist; I'm sure he wants to if not be the provider then at least go half and half on everything."

"Yes, he does," Brennan sighed in frustration "He's such an alpha male."

"But you love him anyway," Angela teased but then something occurred to her, "oh, you're going to let me help you decorate the new house, right?"

"Sure," Brennan nodded. "You have great taste. And I also need your help on another project."

"Oh, what is it?" Angela asked, intrigued. "Maybe a surprise for your knight in FBI armor?"

"No, not exactly," Brennan shook her head and then smiled coyly as she dropped the next bomb. "I want you to help me plan our wedding."

"Yo . . . you . . . your wedding?!!!" Angela was finally able to squeak. "You guys are getting married?!!"

"Well," Brennan drawled "you know what a traditionalist Booth is and since we're moving in together and probably will have at least one child, he thought that it might be a good idea if we got married. And I agreed," she shrugged and had the pleasure to see Angela stupefied into silence. She knew it wouldn't last long, that at any moment the artist would break out into squeals, but for the moment she sat back and enjoyed the rare sight.


	5. Epilogue

**Nick of Time**

**Disclaimer: **Nope, they're not mine.

**A/U: **Well, here were - the end of the road. Hehehe, doesn't that remind you of yet another song? Anyway, this is the last chapter, finally!! I hadn't planned on writing this or the last chapter really. It was supposed to be a short, three chapter fic. I really should know better by now, shouldn't I? But I just couldn't call this fic done without giving you what you're all probably waiting for - actually, there should be two or three things here that you've been waiting for. I think I addressed everyone's requests, I hope I did. If I haven't, I apologize, I tried but in the end, musie has the last word. Thanks for all your lovely reviews. I especially want to thank Pup for all her help as always; Kerry for always encouraging me, reading and commenting on all my fics even when she doesn't always agree with the path I'm the taking the characters on; and Mendenbar, I've said it before and I'll say it again, if it wasn't for her constructive criticism which always challenges me (I'm not sure whether she meant it like that but me being me, I couldn't help but taking it like that :)) I wouldn't keep trying new things and I definitely wouldn't have gotten so much better (at least I'd like to think I'd gotten much better) at writing descriptive scenes. I write because I have to write but thanks to you, I'm a much better writer.

**Chapter 5: Epilogue**

"Wow," Booth panted, as he flopped down next to a still shuddering Brennan. "I think we have that whole 'becoming one' deal down pat, don't you?" He asked, looking over at her with a smirk.

"Yes, that we do," she replied, turning to look at him and smirking back. He grinned and, using the last bit of his energy, turned on his side and put his arm around her waist; Brennan had found out that Booth was a big believer in cuddling. Not that that had surprised her, given how big he'd been on touching her even before they'd become intimate; what had surprised her had been her reaction to it. Before Booth, she had thought that cuddling after sex was restricting and confining; after being with Booth, she found it sweet and tender. Before, she'd turned away and gone to sleep, whether or not the man she was with wanted to cuddle, not that many men had wanted to, but now, if Booth didn't turn to her, she would turn to him. Booth had insisted that cuddling after was an integral part of making love, and she'd found that he was right.

"I can never get enough of you," he murmured as he kissed her forehead. She grinned and nuzzled closer.

"Me neither," she agreed. It was true and that had been something else that had surprised her. Before Booth, the shine of a new relationship had always worn off before the second week was over and while sex hadn't exactly become routine and she'd always been satisfied, the more familiar she'd become with a man, the less excitement she'd felt. With Booth, however, familiarity only seemed to make everything better. Being with someone that you knew as well as you knew yourself brought its own excitement and it didn't matter that not every time was wild and passionate like the first time because no matter what the mood (everything from sweet and gentle to light-hearted and teasing to hard and fast) she was completely engaged with him and she always felt him with her. And that feeling never got old; no, she would never get enough of him, no matter how many years together they were lucky to have. Speaking of which . . .

"Happy anniversary," she said, raising her head enough to lightly kiss his lips.

"I didn't think you'd remember," he told her, pleasantly surprised at being wrong.

"How could I forget one of the best nights of my life?" she asked him, grinning.

"It was a pretty great night, wasn't it?" he asked, chuckling.

"Yes, it was," she nodded, remembering the nerves and fear she'd felt as she decided to go talk with Booth about their relationship and then the sheer excitement and relief at having finally set things straight and taking that step they'd avoided for so long.

"God, I can't believe it's been a year already," he commented and she could only nod again. "It seems like it was only yesterday."

"And sometimes," she added, "it seems like it was ten years ago."

"Yeah," he nodded, thoughtfully. "I know what you mean." They fell into a comfortable silence as they contemplated the year before.

It'd turned out that no one had been really surprised to find that they'd become a couple. Like Parker, everyone had either believed they already were one or had just been waiting for them to wake up to their reality, as Angela had said. In fact, it had been Max that had been the most surprised. It seemed that he hadn't believed Booth when the FBI Agent had denied sleeping with Brennan. The former felon had believed that Booth had just been either respecting Brennan's desire for privacy or decided that discretion was the better part of valor and that he would do better not admitting to a known killer that he was sleeping with the man's daughter or more likely, a combination of both. When it had come out that it hadn't been either and that Booth had actually been telling the truth, he'd been astounded, prompting Brennan to dryly comment that some people didn't go around lying or hiding the truth for no reason.

But while no one had been really surprised that they were a couple, their plans to buy a house and marry in the following months had made more than one mouth drop open in astonishment. To be fair, it was more the getting married part than the moving in together, though no one had seen the 'buying a house' thing coming either, that had stunned everyone. Brennan's stance on the issue was well known by all and no one could quite believe the ease and speed of the reversal. No one but Parker, who thought it was completely normal and Max, who had shrugged and commented that his daughter had always gone full speed ahead whenever she wanted something and was not at all surprised that this was no different.

For someone that hadn't been around his daughter for at least 15 years, Max really had her character down pat because going full speed ahead was exactly what Brennan did. She plunged straight into finding the perfect house for them with the same determination and gusto that she usually reserved for identifying remains. She spent hours researching the areas with the best schools, the best realtor office in the greater metropolitan area and the architectural style that best suited them; she started to collect the booklets with the all the listings found in the supermarkets and to surf the web for the listings found there. For a few weeks terms like 'Victorian,' 'Colonial,' 'Neo-Classical,' 'beams,' 'molding' and the like replaced the more scientific terms Booth had, against his better judgment, become used to and he found that he actually missed them.

Finding the perfect house, however, didn't prove as easy or simple as identifying long dead remains – no matter how careful the research. Most of the properties they were shown just did not have everything they wanted; if Parker liked it Booth didn't, if Brennan liked it Parker didn't and if Booth liked it neither Parker nor Brennan did. It took them over six weeks, over three realtors and more than a few arguments before they finally found it.

It had been a Saturday evening and it was the last house the latest realtor, who knew he was on his way out, had to show them. Booth and Brennan were discouraged and irritated and Parker was bored and irritating. All that changed when the car drove up the driveway and they got a look at the house. The warm rays of the late spring sun enveloped the house in a welcoming glow as it slowly set behind the house. The front yard was bathed in an orange blush that made the flowers around the walkway shine and the light breeze made the leaves on the towering tree dance as they cast their shadows throughout the lawn. The left side of the house had a bush hedge all around it while the right side had a porch that was big enough for a porch-swing. The door was a warm cherry wood with a glass insert for the top half.

The house was big and airy with hardwood floors throughout the first floor. To the immediate right of the front door, there was the staircase to the second floor and the living room was to the immediate left through an arch. A fireplace sat directly opposite the arch so that it was the first thing one saw when stepping into the living room. To the left of the arch, there was a bay window with a window seat that faced the front lawn and two big windows flanked the fireplace. The dinning room was to the right of the living room and separated only by another big arch. The wall that faced the side of the house had three big windows and the rear wall had double French doors that led to the deck and were flanked by two windows. A third arch marked the entrance to the dinning room from the central hallway. The essentially open floor plan and the presence of so many windows inundated the living and dining room with natural light. The hardwood floors and the warm colors of the walls prevented the rooms from looking too cold with all the light coming in.

The kitchen, which was a dream for anybody that takes the least delight in cooking, stood at the end of the house, along side the deck with the entrance across from the half end of the dining room. All the appliances were new and state of the art; the cabinets were again cherry wood with glass inserts in the doors and there were what seemed like miles and miles of counter space. The stove was situated in the island and the sink was behind the island, along the rear wall, big windows ran along on top of the sink and the counters flanking it, to the right hand of the island and sink, a pair of French doors led to the deck. Across from the sink and on the other side of the island was the fridge which was nestled in the middle of a wall of cabinets. A bench had been built in along the middle of the side wall and a table big enough for six sat in front of it with three chairs around it. A huge pantry took up the other half of that wall. And between the pantry and the cabinet wall was the staircase for the basement and the top floor.

Beneath the front staircase was the guest bathroom. A beautiful library was tucked between the guest bathroom and the kitchen; it had built in shelves on both side walls and the far wall had a bank of windows. The second floor had four bedrooms; the master bedroom came with an en-suite and a walk in closet with his and her sides, the second largest bedroom also had a bathroom attached and the last two rooms shared a bathroom. Parker immediately chose the one on the right because of the windows and Brennan privately thought that the bedroom next to that would make a great nursery. The fourth bedroom would be great as a guest bedroom, both agreed.

The basement had two big rooms which would work out very well as Parker's game room/family room and as Booth's den/office/man cave. It also had a smaller space which housed the washer and dryer and had enough space left for storage.

The French doors off the dinning room and kitchen led to the deck, which overlooked a medium sized pool and a backyard big enough for a kid to run around and trees tall enough for swings and a tree house.

The house had been perfect; there had just been one little problem: it had been way beyond the price Booth and Brennan had agreed on. Brennan hadn't seen a problem, as she was more than able to cover the difference. Booth hadn't liked that at all and, knowing Brennan was on the verge of crying 'we'll take it', had decided a hasty retreat was in order. He had ushered a bewildered Parker and protesting Brennan to the car, ignoring the sputtered apologies of the realtor. Apparently, they weren't supposed to have been shown that house; it had been a clerical error that had resulted in the listing being on the realtors list for the day.

On the way to his mom's, Parker, who had been with them to view every house because Rebecca and Brennan agreed that there was going to be enough upheaval in his life and that participating in some of the decisions might help him cope better (not that Booth had thought the kid was having any trouble coping, but, hey, he wasn't going to complain about spending more time with his son), hadn't been able to stop going on and on about the new house. He'd debated out loud the merits of having his room be decorated with Superman v. Batman; he'd asked his dad if he could have pool parties and if they could buy a billiards table and he dropped some heavy hints that the backyard was so big, a dog would have a lot of space to run around. Brennan had nodded along with Parker and given her opinion regarding the Superman, Batman debate, said she didn't see much of a problem with Parker having pool parties and that they would see about getting a billiards table. Booth, who had had no idea Parker even knew what billiards was, decided to intervene before Brennan agreed to the dog. After all, he'd thought, it was time someone inserted a reality check into the situation.

He had told Parker, gently, that he really shouldn't get his hopes up because it wasn't at all sure that they would be getting that house; in fact, he had added, it was entirely possible that they wouldn't get it. When Parker had asked why not, if they all loved it, Booth had tried to explain that it was too expensive but Parker had turned to Brennan and tried to get her support in convincing his daddy that the house was perfect. When Brennan had seemed to be taking Parker's side and started to question just why they wouldn't get the house, Booth hadn't reacted well. He'd turned his head sharply towards her and glaring at her had said that they would discuss it later, he'd then told Parker that we couldn't always get what we wanted and this was one of those times. Parker hadn't really understood what had been going on but had known enough to know his daddy was very upset and it would be better if he dropped the subject. The rest of the trip had been done in very uncomfortable silence. When they arrived at Rebecca's, she had taken one look at Booth's face and had hurriedly taken Parker inside and told them bye.

The ride to Booth's place had also been accomplished in complete silence. Brennan was too confused and irritated and Booth was too pissed for either to say anything. When they finally made it, the door had barely closed before they begun their first real fight since they had become a couple – actually, it was their first real fight in years. It wasn't one of their bickering arguments or even one of their heated discussions; it was a no punched pulled, drag out real fight, the kind they hadn't had since the beginning of their partnership. The difference being that in those days they were strangers and however heated or even nasty their fights had gotten, there had always been a distance between them that had prevented them from taking the shots they took too personally. They were no longer strangers, however, and the arsenal each had to wound the other was considerable to say the least. It was a measure of how much they loved and respected each other and how much they both wanted the relationship to work that they stopped short of saying truly unforgivable things; not that the things that were said weren't bad enough. At one point, Booth had been able to see that Brennan was getting ready to walk out; that second between thinking and acting shook both of them. Instinctively, both knew that if she walked out, something would break and they both realized just how fragile their new relationship still was. Not wanting to make things worse, but not ready to talk it out rationally, each had retreated: Brennan to the bedroom, slamming the door in her wake, and Booth had stood frozen in the living room.

A couple of hours later, they had met in the hallway as Brennan was coming out and Booth was going in to talk. They'd stayed up half the night, working through all the issues the fight had brought up; they knew they loved each other and they knew they wanted to make it work but the insecurities that had prevented them from acting for five years hadn't been automatically erased because they'd declared their feelings for each other. She still fought against the belief that he would some day leave and he still struggled to believe that she really loved him. Their talk couldn't remove the insecurities but just acknowledging them had seemed like a positive step and both had felt considerably better afterwards. Of course, it hadn't been until the next morning when Brennan had casually said that she would be calling the realtor in a few minutes to tell him to put in their offer, that they realized that the whole house issue had not been addressed; both thought it had been settled, it was just that Booth had thought they agreed to keep looking and Brennan had thought they agreed to buy the house since it was perfect.

Biting their tongues and making a concerted effort to avoid another fight, they had sat down and finally discussed what they should do. In the end, the only reason Booth had for not wanting to buy the house was his alpha-male pride; he had no objections to Brennan contributing as long as he contributed equally. Brennan had made it clear that was narrow-minded and impractical as she made more money than him. His back had gone up at that but Brennan had proposed that, if he wanted to feel like he was making as large a contribution as her, he could be responsible for mowing the lawn, trimming the hedges, shoveling the snow, re-painting the hideous color of the bathrooms, take care of any maintenance problems that cropped up, take out the trash, take care of the pool, do the laundry and the shopping. Booth had stopped her before she could name every household chore there was and had grinned as he said that he would take care of everything except the shopping and laundry; those, he'd added, along with the cleaning and cooking, they could split fifty/fifty.

Brennan had agreed, as that was exactly what she'd intended (she really was getting the hang of handling him). And, with Booth taking a big shot to his ego, they had agreed to buy the house. Booth had, however, one stipulation; they could buy the house and move to a fancy neighborhood but he didn't want Parker or any kid they might have later on to grow up thinking they were rich and they could have anything they wanted just by opening their mouths and asking for it. He wanted their kids to know the value of a dollar and not grow up being spoiled rich kids. Brennan had argued that the only sensible thing to do with money was to spend it and she had more than enough even after all the charitable contributions she made and she couldn't think of anything better than to spend it on than their family, especially when she didn't want their kids to lack for anything when it was within her power to give. She didn't want her kids to go through what she'd gone through, she'd told him in a husky voice and he had understood she was thinking of the time when all her belongings had fit into two garbage bags.

He'd taken her hands in his and told her that he had no problem giving their kids everything they needed and most of what they wanted but there had to be limits. And those limits had to be set early on and respected; plus, he'd added, they had to present a united front to the kids, there couldn't be any division. He then explained that what had really bothered him the night before was the fact that she had started to agree with Parker's plan without having discussed it with Booth first. It wasn't because Parker was his kid, he'd hastened to add as he could see that was what she was thinking, in his mind, Parker was as much hers as his already and he had no problem with them teaming up against him when it came to what to have for dinner or what movie to watch or where to go on a Sunday; he was fine with all of that. But when it came to something as big as which house to buy and whether or not to get a dog, those things they needed to discuss by themselves before making a decision, he'd told her, and they should also try to keep any disagreement from being noticed by the kids because they were really, really good at spotting a weak spot and latching onto it. She'd nodded her head slowly and agreed wholeheartedly before she got up from her seat and came over to sit on his lap (something she rarely did and which took him by surprise) and give him a big kiss. When she'd pulled back, he noticed that she was teary eyed. She'd smiled brilliantly and told him that he really shouldn't worry about how much more money she was going to contribute towards buying the house because he had just given her something that was priceless: a son. He'd been speechless for a moment before he drew her closer for a deeper kiss.

That Monday Brennan had dragged Angela to the new house during their lunch hour and the artist had given her complete approval before she'd began to bombard Brennan with ideas on how to decorate it. By the time Booth had shown up at the Jeffersonian to pick up Brennan, her office had been inundated with what seemed to be every decorating magazine there was, paint ships, fabric samples, carpet samples, website printouts featuring finished rooms and painting techniques; there had also been, much to Booth's surprise, every bridal magazine the bookstore carried, photos of wedding cakes, sample menus, printouts with different versions of vows, printouts of wedding invitations, photos of different flower arrangements and photos of what seemed to Booth to be everything a woman could possibly do to her hair. When he saw the sheer . . . mess in the office he hesitated and actually backed out to make sure he was indeed in the right one. When he was convinced that he was, he cautiously walked back in and looked around calling for Brennan.

She called up from the floor while Angela popped up and rushed to pull Booth forward so that they could finally set a date. It seemed that Angela had been waiting patiently for them to set it and she had just run out of patience. Now that they had the house, their offer had been accepted within hours of giving it, they could finally start planning their wedding. So it was that Booth and Brennan set the date for late September. Angela declared that their backyard was the perfect spot for the intimate ceremony they both wanted and Brennan agreed so Booth went along with it, saying that as long as he got married to Bones, he didn't care where they did it.

The four months between the setting of the date and the actual ceremony went by both in a blink of an eye and at a snail's pace. Their offer on the house was accepted almost immediately but the time between then and when they were actually able to move in felt like months instead of a few weeks; the choosing of the new furniture (they'd agreed to have everything new so that there wouldn't be any 'yours' or 'mine' but only 'ours) went surprisingly smooth and took very little time, though that might have been because as long as he was allowed to decorate his 'man cave' however he wanted and as long as the furniture was relatively comfortable, Booth really had very little to say on the matter but then it seemed to take forever before the house was finally decorated to Brennan's and Angela's satisfaction.

They'd agreed on a simple backyard wedding but planning it had turned out to be anything but simple. The right outdoor furniture had to be selected, the right minister had to be found and the caterer, photographer and florists all had ideas that didn't always mesh with Angela's vision. For every decision that was relatively painless, three took hours upon hours of meetings, arguments and compromises – and that was before they even involved Booth in any of them! Booth had said over and over that 'all he cared about was marrying Bones and as long as there was pie, booze, the groom on top of the cake didn't look too wimpy and there was some kind of meat dish on the menu he didn't really care that much about the details; just tell him when to show up and he'd be there.' Brennan and Angela had agreed that all in all that was a very smart attitude.

Much to Brennan's consternation, Angela had insisted that the bride and groom couldn't spend the night before the ceremony together; the bride had argued that she didn't see the point as she and the groom had been living together for months already. Angela had insisted that it was tradition and that they wouldn't want to risk bad luck by flaunting it; Brennan hadn't cared but Booth had thought that it would be nice if they follow at least some traditions. Brennan had given in, but had declared that she wasn't going to leave her home and since Booth was the one that agreed with Angela, he could be the one to leave. Angela, who had decided she was the only one that could make sure the backyard was done properly, had thought that was a great idea and had arranged it so that Booth went and spent the night at Hodgins' and she had spent it with Brennan.

Angela had also arranged for the bride and groom to have their bachelor and bachelorette parties the night before; Hodgins, Sweets, Max, Russ, Jared and Parker had helped Booth celebrate his last night of freedom while Angela, Cam, Amy, Hailey and Emma had helped Brennan toast her new life. Because kids were present at both events, they had been fairly tame; there had been no exotic dancers or any hard liquor. Instead, food, sodas and movies had been the order of the day. And though, Brennan had started the night thinking that she would have much rather been at the lab working on a body from limbo, by the time she'd gone to bed, she'd had to admit that she had enjoyed her party.

Finally, despite all the arguments and bickering that moving in a new house and planning a wedding brought, despite the bizarre way time seemed to have been behaving and despite the well-meaning but occasionally aggravating interference of best friends, their wedding day finally arrived. It was a beautiful, bright and clear day; the kind where the sky is so blue, the occasional clouds so white, the grass so green, where everything is so sharply and boldly delineated that it seems as if everything had been painted by a sharp brush. With the wind blowing gently and the birds chirping gaily, the backyard looked picture perfect when Angela was done with it. Brennan was beyond grateful for all Angela had done as she was pretty sure she wouldn't have been able to get everything done, however, Brennan couldn't resist taking a picture of Angela as she stood in the middle of the backyard in her slippers and robe, curlers in her hair, directing the workers with her coffee cup as if she were using a baton to conduct a symphony. She'd known Booth would love to see the picture and knowing Angela, it might come in handy in the future as blackmail material.

After that, the day had gone fairly fast. They'd had a late breakfast then they'd gone to the beauty salon for massages, facials, pedicures, manicures and to get their hair and make up done. The men, for their part, had spent most of the morning on the ice rink playing, or in some cases learning how to play, hockey. It hadn't been everyone's choice but as Booth was the one getting married, he was the one that got to choose. After a late snack, the men had changed into their tuxedos and gone back to Booth's house, where they'd been promptly restricted to the basement until the guests started arriving.

Brennan and her entourage had also had a late snack after their time at the beauty parlor before they'd gone back to the house to finish getting ready. And before she'd known it, she'd been standing by the doors that led to the deck, watching as Emma and Hailey spread flower petals before them and Angela followed them down the small aisle created by the rows of chairs where the guests were seated. Once Angela, who was Brennan's only attendant, reached the front, everyone quieted and looked towards the deck. Brennan had known it was time, and taking one deep breath, she'd walked out.

Getting married had never been one of Brennan's goals but once she'd decided to do it, she'd seen no reason why she'd had to have a traditional ceremony. As such, she was walking down the aisle to no music but that of nature and she was walking down alone; she'd talked to her father beforehand and had explained that even though she was marrying Booth, she did not want to include those aspects of the ceremony that perpetuate the appearance of women as chattels – she'd decided, willingly and by herself, to join her life to Booth's, no one was 'giving her away' but herself. Her father had understood and had said that was long as he was able to share the day with her, he'd be happy.

As the sun sunk behind the house, Brennan walked over the carpet of rose petals her nieces had laid down, looking straight at Booth, who stood next to a grinning Parker, both looked incredibly handsome in their identical tuxes. Brennan herself was wearing a one shoulder, charmeuse, slim A-line dress, with draped empire bust, which featured brooches at neckline and back and a sweep train. It was done in a soft champagne color as Brennan hadn't even considered wearing white. She was carrying a simple bouquet of daffodils and her hair had been styled in soft waves which fell down her back, kept out of her face by a couple of clips and had a few daisies throughout it. She looked beautiful, simple and elegant and very Brennan-like. Booth couldn't keep his eyes off of her or his grin off his face.

Brennan had kept her eyes on Booth's as she walked and all through the ceremony. The ceremony had been short and sweet. Neither one had wanted anything elaborate; just a simple declaration of their feelings and the formal pronouncement had been enough. For the vows, they had agreed to say the traditional ones. Booth had been surprised at Brennan's easy acquiescence but, for once, she had had no big objection – as long as they left the whole 'to obey' thing out of it. After she'd read them and thought about it, she'd realized that she wouldn't be able to come up with anything else that would convey her feelings for Booth and for their life together any better.

As she'd stood there, looking into his eyes and repeating the words that countless generations before her had uttered, she finally understood why so many people got married despite the sometimes overwhelming odds against them making it. It wasn't because of what people would say or even because society expects it; it wasn't to conform to some norm and it wasn't because people had stars in their eyes (though a fair number of them probably did) and it wasn't because of the party, the food, booze or the dress (though those played a great part in it). People got married because it mattered; they used the same words over and over because they worked and because there was a comfort and even a feeling of safety in knowing that you were following in the steps of those that came before you and that those that came after you would also follow them. It was about making a commitment to the person you wanted to spend the rest of your life with and making it before those that mattered to both of you and about letting the whole world know about it.

It hadn't been anything Brennan had ever wanted or would have ever asked for but in that moment in their backyard, with the sun setting behind them, their eyes on each other, her hand in his and repeating the traditional words that would bind them together, she could only be grateful that she'd been smart enough to agree to it when Booth had asked.

"Either way," Booth continued, breaking Brennan's trip to the past. "It's been a great ride. And it's just beginning."

"Umm," Brennan nodded, nuzzling into his chest. "In less than four months, we'll have our first year wedding anniversary."

"Hard to believe, huh?" Booth asked, grinning. "I mean, who would have thought _you'd_ be saying that a couple of years ago?"

"Yeah, well, things change," Brennan shrugged.

"They sure do," Booth agreed.

"It was a beautiful ceremony, wasn't it?" she asked, surprising Booth as she had rarely talked about their wedding before.

"Yes, it was," he answered. "Small and intimate just like we wanted," the guest list hadn't even reached 50; it'd just been their closest friends and family. "And the food was great," Booth continued, smiling as he thought of the feast they'd enjoyed after the ceremony.

"I wasn't sure about the evening ceremony," Brennan admitted. "But I have to say Angela was right - the photos looked great with the sunset as background."

"That they did," Booth nodded. "The whole wedding was great; Angela did a great job. We really owe her."

"That we do," she said and then because she'd just been thinking about it, she added, "I'm really glad we got married." Booth looked at her for a few seconds before leaning forward and kissing her sweetly.

"Me too," he told her as he pulled back a bit. "I love you," he breathed before leaning forward for another kiss. It wasn't the first time he'd said in the year they'd been together; in fact, he said it almost every day. And though lately, she'd been tempted to say it back, she'd always held back. That night, however, she didn't. That night for the first time, she stopped letting her brain get in the way and finally let her heart speak.

"I love you too," she told him and felt him freeze. There was a few seconds of absolute silence before Booth very slowly leaned up on his elbow and looked down at her.

"What did you say?" he asked, very quietly. Brennan looked up into his eyes and could see everything he felt for her reflected there and in that instant she knew. She knew that she had always loved him, practically since the moment they'd met. Love wasn't something you could quantify, qualify or even define because it meant different things for different people. And in Brennan's case love meant Booth; so she smiled, cupped his check with her palm and told him what he'd been so patiently waiting for.

"I love you."

**The End**


End file.
